


First You Get Hurt, Then You Get Close

by rocknrollprincess131



Category: Chicago Fire, Chicago Med, Chicago PD (TV)
Genre: Eventual Fluff, Eventual Relationships, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/M, Romance, Teasing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-15
Updated: 2017-05-17
Packaged: 2018-05-14 00:59:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 24
Words: 72,851
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5723578
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rocknrollprincess131/pseuds/rocknrollprincess131
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Snow Greyson is new to Chicago and on her own for the first time, rooming with Sylvie Brett and working as a nurse at Gaffney Medical Center. The only damper is Dr. Will Halstead, her no-nonsense/no personality co-worker. Dr. Connor Rhodes takes an immediate liking to Snow, but there's something about Will that has her wanting more. Will/OC/Connor love triangle.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Blowing In

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snow Greyson adapts to living in Chicago with the help of roommate Sylvie Brett; Sylvie brings Snow to Molly's getting her better acquainted with the squads; Chili and Kim suggest fixing Snow up, with Sylvie turning down the choice of Will Halstead.

**Hello, world! I'm so excited to be presenting my first ever stories for the _Chicago_ franchise! Until opens the _Chicago Med_ fandom, these will be posted in both _Chicago Fire_ and _Chicago P.D.,_ also limiting me to what characters I can post,but there will be lots of characters crossing over in both stories! Sorry to be inaccurate to the fandom, but in both stories Will will be the older brother. They kind of screwed up the casting on that one, considering that Nick looks older than Jesse, but they're still too cute! These stories will be my take on him, but he comes around as the chapters go on. Also, since I'm new to this fandom, go easy on me if anybody appears to be out of character. I'm still getting into the groove of writing these characters. I hope you enjoy and spread the word! :) The title of this story was inspired by Cold War Kids' song "First", which I do not own!**

**_Chapter One: Blowing In_ **

A nip was picking up in the air on this cloudless Chicago day, one that could even be felt through rolled up car windows. Snow Greyson contemplated whether or not to turn up the heat in her Audi, but decided against it. According to her iPhone GPS, she was less than five minutes away from her destination.

2061 Kolodony Street, Chicago, Illinois, her new address. This was the first time Snow would be living away from home and in a new state. While attending the University of Michigan to get her associate's and bachelor's of science in nursing degrees, she had made the hour and a half commute there and back in between working at Bronner's Christmas Wonderland.

This hadn't been an easy move at first. Her parents wanted to know why she couldn't just work at the hospital in her hometown of Frankenmuth since it was so expensive to live in the city. Her college boyfriend Skeet wasn't too fond of her going to Chicago and the crime the streets held. Her baby brother Leaf was still too young to understand but had clung to her leg bawling his eyes out when she tried to leave.

Regardless of all that, she still packed up almost everything she owned in a Uhaul and left home at eight in the morning. Snow had to remember that this wasn't for her family, it was for herself, to start the foundation that would build her future. At twenty four years old, it was about time she broke out on her own. Compared to Frankmuth's five thousand population, Snow would definitely be the little fish in the big Chicago pond of two to ten million, but she was ready to dive in head first.

Pulling up to the second townhouse on the right, the neighborhood was pretty vacant, but looked exactly like the pictures on Craigslist. Snow smiled when she saw a blonde waving and parked her car in front, practically jumping out she was so excited.

"Hi, Snow! Welcome to Chicago!"

"Hi, Sylvie! It's great to be here!"

The two girls hugged each other. Having talked over Skype a few times and almost daily texting, they were both surprised how normal the other seemed to be, the risk of coming across a psychopath is always present whenever meeting through Craigslist. So far, Sylvie Brett was the same sweet girl Snow had been conversing with for the past month.

"Did you have a hard time finding the place?"

Snow shook her head, grabbing her tote and following Sylvie inside. "Nope, not at all. It was a pretty peaceful drive, too." She looked around the townhouse, pleasantly surprised that it also looked exactly like the pictures that had been emailed to her. An open kitchen, office, den, bathroom and foyer made up the downstairs while upstairs there were two bedrooms and two bathrooms.

The downstairs was decorated with different framed pictures, potpourris, and wallflowers plugged in, the scents of warm vanilla and candy apple wafting in the air. "My mom adores the Bath and Body wallflowers."

"Aren't they great? I know, I kind of went all out sprucing the place up, I was just glad that I found a roommate that wasn't off their rocker."

"Well, unless you count crying at Disney movies crazy, other than that I'm totally normal."

"I'm the exact same way, the end of _Tangled_ had me bawling like a baby."

"Me too!"

They laughed, filling the room. She had only been around Sylvie in person for a few minutes, but Snow liked her. She was very sweet and had a good head on her shoulders. In a way, they were similar. Sylvie has called off her wedding and dumped her childhood sweetheart to become an EMT, gaining her independence, which a lot of people would have been too afraid to do. Before leaving Michigan, Snow broke up with Skeet, wanting to find herself, which was exactly what she was going to do.

"Here, sit down. I'll text Otis and Cruz and let them know you're here. Do you want something to drink?" Sylvie asked as she walked into the kitchen.

"Sure, I'll have some tea." Snow sat down on the couch. "It's so nice of your friends to come over and help me set up. Thanks so much and I love the color you went with for the room, it's pretty."

"They had nothing to do on a Saturday, and they owed me one because I sang at this wedding at the firehouse for them, so I figured why not cash in the favor now?"

"Wow, you sing? That's so cool! They sound like good guys."

Sylvie shrugged, boiling the water. "Eh, it's not something I do often, to be honest. More for fun. I work with the guys down at Station 51, Cruz and I were dating up until a few months ago."

"And you're still friends? That's not always easy, I commend you. Before I left, I told Skeet we would still be friends, but he kind of brushed me off. He may be taking this kind of hard, we were together since freshman year of college, so just hitting six years."

The tea kettle whistled, the water ready. "That must have been difficult, my ex fiancé and I were together longer than that. Is Celestial ok?"

Snow nodded. "Yes, my favorite. Black cherry if you have it. Do you miss him though?"

"Of course I do, but everything happens for a reason. I think I just needed to break away and prove that I can stand on my own. If I had to do it all over again, I would." Sylvie walked over with two coffee mugs and poured the water in. "Otis and Cruz are pretty cool, so are the rest of the guys. If you're feeling up to it, tonight after we get you settled in I'll take you to Molly's. It's the bar we all hang out at, I'm sure you'll probably meet a person or two from the hospital."

Starting Monday, Snow would be working as a nurse at Gaffney Chicago Medical Center, so it would do her some good to meet a few of her future coworkers before the first day.

"Are there cute guys?" She asked with a laughing smile.

"Oh, absolutely!"

"Then I'm in!" Snow raised her mug. "Cheers, to new friends, fresh starts and cute guys!"

They clinked their mugs.

"Cheers."

**_8:45 PM_ **

Snow studied her reflection in the bathroom mirror, contemplating if she should change her outfit for the umpteenth time. She was currently wearing black pants, a black and grey sweatshirt/canvas jacket, a grey T shirt and charcoal colored boots.

Like most girls, Snow had her own insecurities. She could never tell if she was being looked at or looked through, especially when it came to guys. Most people would consider her attractive or beautiful, she had even been told she was hot on more than one occasion, but she couldn't always see it.

Her hair, which was naturally a deep chocolate brown, went to just above the small of her back and now had peekaboo colors of fuschia and baby blue in it. Her eyes were down turned and light grey (which was ironic considering her last name was "Greyson"), but still popped, even more so with eyeliner and mascara.

Having been an all star on the track and volleyball teams in high school, Snow was toned but happened to have a bit of an hourglass/pear body shape, making her look hippier than she would have liked, especially when it came to finding that perfect pair of jeans. Naturally, it resulted in a lot of unwanted attention, so she usually dressed in baggy clothes to conceal her figure.

"Snow! Are you ready?" Sylvie knocked on the door.

"Yeah!" Snow applied a sparkly topcoat to her already pink glossed pearlique style lips before opening the door. "I'm ready."

"Wow, you look great! You certainly will be attracting a lot of attention tonight."

"Thanks, same for you." Sylvie was wearing a loose shirt with tight jeans, managing to look like a supermodel in casual cool. Snow couldn't help but be a little jealous, it was probably a cake walk for her to pick an outfit and walk out the door.

"Alright, let's go."

**_MOLLY'S, FIFTEEN MINUTES LATER_ **

"Here it is, our home away from home." Sylvie smiled as she and Snow walked through the door. Snow looked around, taking in the sights of the various fire plaques and Chicago sports memorabilia, white Christmas lights bunched up on the ceiling. It resembled any other bar that one would see on television, everybody was paired off, laughing and drinking, a flat screen TV and 80's music blasting from the stereo. She couldn't help but think of the bars back in Frankenmuth where all the kids from school would hang out since they didn't card.

"Sylvie, hi!"

A brunette waved to them from across the bar.

"Hey! I'll be right there."

Sylvie turned to Snow, who was looking around, her hands in her pockets. "Come on, I want to introduce you to my friends." She grabbed Snow by the hand, leading her over to the bar. "Snow Greyson, this is Kim Burgess, she's a police officer over at Chicago P.D."

"Hi, great to meet you!"

"Likewise, welcome to the Windy City."

"Hey, Brett, is this the new girl?"

Snow looked over to see a short man with thinning salt and pepper hair and a bit of a high pitched voice walk up.

"Yep, this is her."

"Snow Greyson."

The man gave her a big smile, extending his hand forward. "Chris Herrmann. A newbie friend of ours gets free drinks on the house their first night. What can I get ya, Snow White?"

Snow's face lit up. "Really? That's awesome, thanks! Um, I'm not that much of a drinker, how about a strawberry lemonade?"

Herrmann cracked a smile. "Not a drinker, huh? I'm sure we'll make one of you yet. Coming right up."

"Snow," Sylvie nudged her. "I want to introduce you to the rest of the firehouse squad."

"Alright, I'm down." Snow smiled to herself, the warmth enveloping her. It had only been less than a day and she already felt so accepted by these strangers who would soon become her friends.

**_AN HOUR LATER_ **

"I couldn't believe how the season ended, with Emma being the new Dark One!"

"Neither could I, but I'm so glad Regina and Robin are back together!"

"Me too." Snow added, sighing in content. "They're such a cute couple. I totally get the feels whenever I watch."

So far, everything was off to a great start. In addition to Kim, Sylvie had introduced Snow to Chili, the paramedic in charge that drove in the ambulance with her, and Gabby Dawson, a fellow firefighter at 51. The girls didn't mind at all when she commented how cute Chili's friend with benefits Jimmy and Kim and Gabby's fiancés Adam and Matt were. Everybody here was so welcoming and friendly, it was all she could have asked for. Now, she was sitting with Sylvie, Kim and Chili talking about _Once Upon A Time_.

"It's awesome to meet some fans of the show. I'm surprised you guys have time to watch anything, or how I will, either."

"Gotta love that DVR." Kim said.

"Totally. I'll be right back, I need to use the restroom." Snow got up, excusing herself. The girls waited until she was gone to burst into big smiles.

"Oh, my gosh, she is so cute!"

"I know, isn't she?" Sylvie smiled, knowing that everybody would take an instant liking to her new roommate.

"She's adorable, except I can't help but notice she has a bit of an eye contact problem or is that just me?" Kim asked.

Sylvie shook her head. "No, it's not. Snow mentioned it to me on the way over here but I noticed when we first met. I think it happens when she feels timid or uncomfortable."

"I'm good at reading people, I can tell she's got a fierceness to her." Chili sipped her Goldschlager. "Maybe she needs to get out more, does she have a boyfriend in Frankenmuth still or no?"

"They just broke up, but she said she's interested in getting back out there."

"How about Severide?"

"I'm not sure, he's charming enough but isn't he involved with that chick that stopped by the firehouse the other day?"

"There's Mouse over at P.D., he's pretty cute." Kim suggested.

"Hmm," Chili nodded. "I can see the potential with him, they're both kind of shy... Or maybe not. Shit, we'd have to make all the moves for both of them."

"Who knows, it could work."

There was silence between them, until Kim's face lit up and she snapped her fingers. "Hey! What about-"

Sylvie held her hand out and shook her head. "Nu-uh, no way."

"What? He's attractive in his own way and he's our friend."

"It's not his looks, it's that he's kind of a playboy. I've seen him with multiple girls since he's been here, he's not really a one woman type. She's good-natured but being from kind of a small town might have made her a bit puerile. I was the same way when I first got here."

There was a silence at the table, letting the words sink in. It wasn't necessarily a bad quality, if anything, it added to Snow's overall kindness.

Kim shrugged. "I suppose you're right."

"Well, there's the other two, so it won't be a total bust." Chili agreed.

Sylvie nodded, sipping her wine. "That's true. There's no way my new roommate is going out with Will Halstead."

**_REVIEW AND FOLLOW! NO FLAMES! :)_ **


	2. The Start of Something New

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snow starts her first day at Gaffney on the wrong foot by getting on Dr. Will Halstead's annoyed side, but making the acquaintance of Dr. Connor Rhodes lightens things up a bit; Dr. Charles evaluates Snow, trying to get her to discuss something from her past; Snow's parents call and Sylvie helps cheer her up; Will has a date with Zoey.

**Hi, everybody! Sorry I didn't update sooner, I was swamped with the holidays, lots of reading, writer's block and a flare up with my wrist, but all is good now! How intense was the crossover?!**

**I'm so glad that the _Chicago Med_ fandom has finally been put up on here! I'm not sure if I've mentioned this before, but I AM not a fan of Natstead/Manstead whatever the kids are calling it, but to each is own. I think she is a good doctor but all wrong for Will. Like I stated last time, these stories will be my take on him, but he comes around as the chapters go on. I think I'm finally getting into the groove of the characters, and as we have seen Will has a tendency to be a bit cocky.**

**For Snow's parents I picture Peter Faccinelli from _Nurse Jackie_ (which I just finished binge watching on Netflix!) as her father and Carla Guigino as her mother. I thought of somebody else and forgot them, but for now it's Carla. Be sure to check out _Not Just Medicine- Chicago Med_ by EngieFangirl and _Walking On A Thin Line_ by Ms Isabella!**

**_Chapter Two: The Start of Something New_ **

**_Sunday Morning, 10:00 am_ **

Will Halstead woke up, relieved to find that the blinds were closed and the sun wasn't blinding him, which was short lived by a blasting headache.

"Urgh, I have got to stop doing so many shots. Four's the limit."

He reached over to grab his boxers when he discovered the nude girl in his bed. Looking her over, she was a skinny brunette with small breasts, but she was attractive.

**_Hmm, not a bad night after all._ **

In desperation mode to cure his hangover, Will got up and headed for the kitchen in search of coffee. Luckily for him, his younger brother Jay had already brewed a pot and was sitting at the kitchen table with a cup.

"Morning, bro." Said Jay, not looking up from his paper.

"Morning."

"You had a pretty late night, huh? I'm glad I ducked out when I did."

"Ha, you didn't miss much." Will walked around to prepare his coffee.

"Man, when are you gonna stop being such a playboy partier? I swear, you've brought home a different chick almost every night since you moved here from New York."

Will smirked at him. "Hey, who's the older one here, huh?"

He had moved from New York two months ago, leaving behind a lucrative career as a plastic surgeon at a top medical practice in the city. The reasons why had to remain unknown to those around him, until he knew it was safe...

"I'm just saying, it would be nice to see you settle down with somebody and finally cure those itchy feet of yours. You keep jumping from bed to bed the only thing you're going to catch is an STD."

"Ha, don't worry, I play it safe."

**_Monday morning, 8:00 am_ **

Snow strolled into Gaffney Medical Center, overly excited for her first day of work. She had gotten up early and gone for a run, like she did every morning. After a nice hot shower and a good breakfast, Snow was ready to go. Today was the start of the rest of her life, where she would be helping doctors to save lives, even save a few of her own.

She walked up to the front desk, the hospital being unusually quiet so early in the morning with the exception of various machines trilling their sounds. An African American woman with black curly hair in a low bun sat behind the partition.

"Hi!"

The woman looked up at her. "May I help you?"

Snow nodded, still smiling. "Yes, you can! I'm Snow Greyson, the new nurse from Frankenmuth. I'm supposed to speak to Maggie?"

"That would be me, but what's with the uniform?"

"Oh, well they had my size on back order so I was told to pick up a pair of scrubs in the interim." Snow was wearing black scrubs adorned with the characters from _Inside Out_. Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear and Disgust. It was certainly very loud and colorful.

A tall red headed man in red scrubs and a white doctor's coat walked up to her. "Hey there. You must be looking for the children's ward, it's on the third floor." He nodded before walking off.

Snow turned around after him. "Excuse me?"

The man turned back to face her, giving Snow a good view of the name on his coat. _Dr. William Halstead, M.D._. "Oh, sorry, I assumed you were here to entertain the kids. You kind of look like a clown." He was actually cute despite that half insult. Really cute.

She blinked, dumbfounded, before smiling. "Ha, no, I'm not a clown. I'm the new nurse, my scrubs were on back order so I picked up a pair until they're shipped. _Inside Out_ was the best! My little brother loved it."

"Uh huh." He nodded, unamused.

"I'm Snow, it's nice to meet you, Dr. Halstead." Snow walked over and shook his hand, noticing he had a strong shake, along with mud brown eyes and a five o'clock shadow.

"Hi. You shouldn't have your hair like that, it presents a distraction." He pointed at her hair, which was in a high wraparound ponytail, showing her colored streaks. "You're also not supposed to wear acrylic nails. Weren't you sent a copy of the Gaffney guidelines?" Dr. Halstead pulled a mini notepad and pen out of his coat pocket, making Snow nervous.

"Um, yes, I was, but I didn't see anything in there about hair color. My streaks are mostly on the bottom, they only show when I have my hair up."

He didn't seem to care what she was saying. "You really should have finished reading it and remembered what you are and aren't supposed to do. Get your hair out of your face while you're at it. Take a look at Dr. Manning, that's how you should have your hair."

"What's going on, Will?"

A dark haired, light olive skinned woman walked up to them, dressed in the same doctor's coat and scrubs with a distended pregnant belly. She couldn't have been very far from her due date. Her pouty lips just barely covered her too big of teeth, her face gaunt yet fleshy at the same time, but she was somewhat pretty and had "bitch" written all over her.

"Hey, Natalie. I was just telling our new nurse here what an appropriate hair style is for the emergency room."

Natalie looked Snow up and down before shrugging. "Wouldn't hurt, along with proper scrubs."

"They're on back order." Snow could feel her face heating up.

Will ripped off the note and placed it in her hand. "Here, take this to Sharon Goodwin, chief administrator, she'll figure out what to do with you."

"I'd do what he says if I were you, he knows what he's talking about." Natalie patted Snow on the shoulder before walking off. She couldn't tell if it was meant in sincerity or sarcasm..

Snow looked down at the note. Were work write ups still used or was he stuck in a time warp? "Dr. Halstead, is this really necessary? My streaks are in the back _beneath_ my hair, they only show when I wear it up." She tried to laugh, but all she got in return was a cold, harsh stare.

"I think it is. I don't know how things went wherever you came from, but at Gaffney insubordination doesn't fly. Take a good look at your new coworkers, they aren't walking around looking like Jem and the Holograms."

With that, Will turned around and walked over to Natalie, who had apparently been waiting for him, and they walked off in another direction. Maybe they were together, but Snow hadn't noticed a ring when they shook hands. Who knows? Will could be the father of Natalie's baby for all she knew.

Snow felt embarrassed, her cheeks flushed and her eyes tearing.

**_He didn't need to be so rude to a perfectly nice stranger._ **

She was mortified and wanted to run away, but she wasn't five years old anymore, almost twenty years past. She turned around and noticed Maggie giving her a sad eyed look.

**_Great, now I'm being pitied._ **

"Do you know where I'm supposed to go now?" Snow asked quietly.

Maggie nodded, pointing across the room. "The lockers are in the break room, then come back here for a schedule."

"Thank you."

Taking a deep breath, she composed herself and made her way to the break room. Perhaps this day would get better somehow.

"Hey." A voice called out.

Snow looked behind her to see yet another doctor, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed, this one having black hair and royal blue eyes.

"Sorry, are you talking to me?" She pointed at herself, to which he nodded and walked over.

"Yes, I am. Don't worry, Will thinks he's a big shot because he transferred here from a fancy Manhattan practice, but he forgets he was once a newbie, also. He gave me a similar lecture when I started here a few months back." He smiled, revealing pearly whites. His nose was a bit too long, but it worked for him and it made it easier to look at his face.

"Well, it's nice to know I'm not entirely alone. I just hope I'm not scorned by everybody else, too."

"I don't think it'll be that severe."

"You're probably right. I'm Snow, by the way."

He nodded. "I know, I overheard you telling Maggie. I'm Dr. Connor Rhodes."

"Like that big department store, right? My uncle used to take me every Christmas to see their window display, but I've never been inside."

"Well, actually, it's my family's store. I don't really associate myself with it, though. Sort of a falling out."

Snow noticed his sudden discomfort and felt bad. "Oh, I'm sorry."

"Don't be, it's fine. So what's Frankenmuth like? Where is it, anyway?"

"It's in Michigan. We're famous for our beer and Bavarian festivals."

"Well, there's nothing dull about that now, is there?" He opened the door for her.

"I suppose not, but when you're used to it all the time it becomes pretty routine. We're also home to the world's largest year round Christmas store, I used to work there."

Will and Natalie happened to glance over when they walked in, but didn't say anything. Connor nodded at them as Snow found an empty locker and put her things inside.

"I swear, there's every kind of light, ornament, tree and candy you could think of. People from all around the globe come just to see the store. It was fun, with the exception of having to dress like an elf, but my little brother found it amusing. Then again, he's six, he finds many things amusing."

"Ha, I can imagine. My nephew still gets amused when an elevator goes up and down, it's pretty funny."

"So I gotta ask all of you, is this place more _Scrubs_ or _Grey's Anatomy_?" Snow asked, figuring it would be a good tension reliever to involve the others and act like nothing happened. It seemed to be working when Natalie laughed, even Will cracked a smile.

"I'd hardly say we were _Scrubs_." She said. "Maybe more like _Tales From The E.R._ , truer to real life."

"Well, look out, because I'm gonna be going _Nurse Jackie_ on all of you."

"Ah, in what sense do you mean? Is it because you're a drug addict or is it because you grab everybody's genitals?" Will raised an eyebrow and put his hand to the side of his mouth to hide it. "Better hide the Percocet and OxyContin." This made Snow's smile disappear and Natalie smirk.

"What? No, that's not what I meant-"

Before she could finish, Maggie barged in. "Twelve car pile up, people! There's about five injuries that we know of, 51 is bringing them over as we speak, so get on it."

"Twelve car pile up? How bizarre." Connor elbowed Snow. "It's showtime, kiddo. Welcome to Chicago Med."

**_4:30 pm_ **

Snow stared at the door in front of her and timidly knocked. _Dr. Daniel Charles, Psychology, M.D._ it read in gold and black. She was getting ready to clock out when she had been requested upstairs, knowing who the doctor was because of her uncle, but never met him.

A portly man with kind eyes and salt and peppered hair greeted her. "Hello there, you must be Snow. Dr. Charles." He extended his hand, which she shook.

"Hello, it's a pleasure to meet you."

"Please, come in and have a seat." He waved his hand out and closed the door once she walked in. The office was pretty basic: light yellow walls, wooden furniture, cases overflowing with books, degrees and different posters framed and hanging up. "So, how was your first day?" Dr. Charles asked, taking a seat behind the desk.

Snow half rolled her eyes. "Where do I begin?"

It had been a crazy day since the pile up. There ended up being fifteen injuries, two D.O.A., three needing surgeries on their arm, leg, and an emergency appendectomy. Snow had been going back and forth between helping Dr. Rhodes and Dr. Halstead, the latter breathing down her neck the entire time and critiquing more than he should been, even over the things that were done correctly. He also found it terribly amusing to keep calling Snow "Jem", but she had to admit he really was an excellent doctor.

One of his patients had a heart attack so he thought, but it turned out to be much worse. Will had actually gotten into a tiff with Natalie regarding the final oxygen tank, he wanted to give it to his patient and she wanted to save a premature baby. Turns out they weren't dating, especially when Snow witnessed Zoe, the new leggy blonde pharmaceutical rep, asking Will out to dinner. He seemed pretty intrigued and had a cocky smirk on his face the rest of the day.

"It was... interesting. Overwhelming but interesting nonetheless. Everybody here has been very nice."

Luckily, she had managed to make friends with April and Sarah, a fellow nurse and fourth year medical student, respectively.

"Sounds like you're off to a good start. I'm sure you know why you're here?"

She hesitated before nodding slowly. "I think so, my uncle told me to be prepared for it. Mandatory psych eval for new employees, right? I can answer all your questions now. I don't drink or smoke, the only drugs I've taken were those prescribed post-op and my anxiety medication. I'm newly single, no history of heart disease, insanity or diabetes in the family."

While Snow was new to Illinois, she wasn't entirely unfamiliar with Chicago. Her parents took her and Leaf to visit their aunt and uncle during winter break, which is how she became acquainted with the Rhodes' department store. Snow's paternal uncle Wes was a private psychopharmacologist in the city while her father Vince settled for the small town life in Michigan, being one of Frankenmuth's four psychologicists.

Dr. Charles smiled. "Well, thank you for making my job that much easier. That's not the only reason why I called you up. I wanted to see how you've been coping since your surgery almost a year ago. You were in a hurry to get home, which is why we didn't meet last time you were here."

"I know." She swallowed the lump forming in her throat, desperately pushing away the bubbling emotions.

"It's not an easy thing to endure, you're a very brave young lady. Former patients of mine have been much older and gone through the same. Do you think you're ready to talk yet?"

She shook her head. "Not yet, but I've been keeping a journal, I usually draw more than write though. I want to, I really do, and I know I should before I explode or something, but don't worry. It wouldn't dare happen here, you can trust me."

It had been a difficult past year, because life was sometimes very unfortunate and had dealt her a cruel hand. She hadn't wanted the surgery, it scared Snow to lose a part of herself, but if she didn't she would have died. The scars healed but were still somewhat visible, making her cry whenever she saw them, still hearing the voices from the operating room. Her best friend Emily tried to make her feel better by saying she wasn't entirely gone, but it would take some time getting adjusted, if ever. Skeet tried to be there as much as he could, but Snow felt him slipping away and ultimately set him free. It was too much to handle, she couldn't even do it herself some days.

"Oh, by the way," Snow pulled the paper slip out of her pocket and handed it over. "I was wondering if you could tell me where Sharon Goodwin's office is, I saw her on the floor a lot but it was swamped. I was written up for my hair and nails, then called insubordinate when I questioned it."

Dr. Charles wasn't entirely surprised about Will doing a write up. His love for medicine made him very meticulous in his efforts and wanting everybody else to follow the rules as well, but this was maybe a bit too harsh. Perhaps he'd have to fill him in on Show's situation, except that would be breaking doctor/patient confidentiality. It was certainly a tough predicament.

"You know what? Don't worry about this, it's not a big deal. Just wear the scrubs you have and keep your hair, but maybe think about nail polish over acrylics, ok?" He threw the note in trash.

She breathed a sigh of relief. "Wow, really? I was so nervous, thank you for this extrication."

"You're welcome. In regards to what we were previously discussing, I understand everything you're saying, Snow. If and when you are ready to go further, my door is always open. It's important that you know there's somebody you can talk to, but I want it to be your choice."

"Thank you, Dr. Charles. I appreciate everything you've done for me today."

Snow knew that she would eventually have to bare her soul, whether it be with Dr. Charles or whomever she dated, even her new friends. It was all a matter of trust, but she wasn't in that particular comfort zone just yet. Hopefully, in time, she would.

**_6:15 PM_ **

Snow was in the kitchen making a salad when "Dancing In The Dark" by Bruce Springsteen started playing from her phone. Smiling, she answered the FaceTime call, hardly able to contain her excitement.

"Hi, Mom and Dad!"

"Hey, baby girl! How's our favorite daughter doing?"

Her parents were sitting together on the couch in the family room, seeing the pictures in the background bringing nostalgia for Snow.

"I think you mean your only daughter, Daddy." Snow laughed, sticking her tongue out.

"Of course I do."

"We wanted to hear all about your first day!" Her mom Maia said, green eyes sparkling. Snow was a combination of her parents, having her mother's eye and face shape and her father's narrow nose. Leaf, on the other hand, looked exactly like their father.

"It was pretty crazy! There was a twelve car pile up, fifteen injuries and three surgeries."

"Wow! That sounds like quite the adventure! Our little girl is already saving lives. I'm so proud of you, honey."

"Thanks, Mom."

"Uncle Wes called and said you saw Dr. Charles today, how did that go?" Vince asked.

"Uh, fine, it was pretty short. Hey, where's Leaf?"

"You just missed him, he went to bed early. Skeet dropped by earlier, he wishes you'd call him."

Snow had to restrain an eye roll. Of course Skeet would try to win her back through her parents. "I'll think about it."

"Peanut, is there something you aren't telling us?"

Snow shook her head, thankful they hadn't seen the salad. She indulged in stress eating, having already scarfed up two Sno-Balls and a can of Sour Cream and Onion Pringles. "No... I mean, yeah. It's not a big deal. I got written up for my streaks and acrylic nails, but it's fine."

Maia gave her a confused look. "You got written up? Isn't that a bit much? Who would do that?"

"Well-"

She was getting ready to tell them all about Upper East Side Will Halstead when the front door opened.

"Snow? You here?" Sylvie asked as she walking inside.

"Yeah, in the kitchen! Hey, my parents are on FaceTime, come say hi!"

Sylvie greeted them happily. "Hey, guys! How are you?" Snow had introduced them a couple times during her Skype sessions with Sylvie, and they really seemed to like her.

"Hi, Sylvie! It's so nice to see you again. We're just hearing all about Snow's day. Thanks so much again for taking her under your wing."

"Of course! It's no problem, she's great."

Maia and Vince smiled, happy that their daughter had a new and true friend in the city.

"I'm gonna go but I'll talk to you guys soon, ok?"

"Alright, sounds good. Bye, Sylvie. I hope you girls can make it for Christmas."

"We'll try." Sylvie said.

"I love you, Mom and Dad."

"We love you, too. Bye, honey."

"Bye!"

They waved to each other before ending the call, Snow turning to Sylvie afterwards.

"Sorry about that. How are you? Today was crazy, huh?"

Sylvie nodded. "Tell me about it, I thought we'd never get everybody to the hospital, but we did. How did everything go on your first day?"

"Oh, my god, do I have a story for you." Snow ripped open a bag of croutons, putting a handful into the salad, followed by a bag of shredded mozzarella cheese. "So I walk in and get immediately scorned for my outfit and hair by this hot shot NYC doctor that thinks he's God's medical gift to the world. I would be so sure otherwise that he thought that of himself, this desperate chick threw herself all over him and he just lapped that right up." She squirted dressing onto the salad before mixing it. "I mean, don't get me wrong, this guy is actually pretty cute. He has a great smile and really nice arms, but he's a dick."

"Wow, really? What's his name?" Sylvie didn't even have to ask, she already knew who Snow was talking about, leaving her stomach in slight knots.

"Dr. Will Halstead, Dr. Asshole Dickhead is more like it." Snow flopped down on the couch before furiously stabbing at her salad. "I swear, is he allergic to manners? Then I tried to be nice again and he completely turned my reference to _Nurse Jackie_ around and made it some off colored joke about me being a pill popping pervert! The entire day was "You're not doing this right." Or "That's not how it's done.". I know I was doing it right, I went to school just as long as you did! He also thought he was so hilarious calling me "Jem" the whole time, too. Urgh!" She put the salad bowl down on the table and her head in her hands, propping her knees up, Sylvie sitting down next to her.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to sound like a nut case, I have bad anxiety and I guess this Dr. Halstead rattled me."

"Hey," Sylvie rubbed her back. "I get it, you don't have to explain yourself. I understand. Maybe he was just having an off day? It happens."

At that moment, Sylvie was grateful that she had turned down Kim's suggestion of fixing Snow up with Will. It probably would have been even more of a disaster.

"Yeah, you're probably right. The day wasn't a total bust. There's a lot of nice people that work at Gaffney, and the new doctor is quite a hunk."

"Well, that's good to know." Sylvie came up with an idea. "You know what? I just came up with a great stress reliever. Come on, throw some workout gear on and meet me downstairs." She got to her feet and raced up the stairs.

Snow looked confused. "Why, what's going on?"

"Fun is what's going on. You'll be thanking me later, I know it!"

Snow took a deep breath. Sylvie was probably right and perhaps Will was just in a mood or something. Everybody has bad days, his just unfortunately occurred on her first. Who knows, maybe they would eventually hit it off...

**_MEANWHILE, ACROSS TOWN_ **

Jay Halstead walked into his apartment only to be practically blasted out by Imagine Dragons' "Roots" blaring from the stereo. He figured Will had a rough day, which was the only reason for him playing alternative rock.

Jay found his older brother dressed in work out gear and playing boxing on Wii Sports, having worked up quite a sweat.

"Hey, man. When did you get in?" Will asked, his eyes never leaving the screen while he continued to punch the air, game controllers in hand.

"Just now. What's going on? Bad day at work?"

Will started rapidly drumming his wrists until his computer opponent was knocked out, then turned off the music. "My day was very hectic." He made his way to the kitchen, Jay following behind. "Twelve car pile up, surgeries, just a day in the life of an E.R. doctor, but that's not all."

"What else?"

Will opened the refrigerator door and pulled out a Powerade. "There was this girl at work, she just moved here from Michigan, I can tell she's going to be a problem."

"How so?"

"Well, she strolled in off the street, upbeat and bubbly wearing loud Disney Pixar scrubs, had her hair in a high wraparound ponytail with colored streaks and acrylic nails like freaking Jem. I wrote her up for insubordination, that's not how you come to work at a hospital."

"Can you even do write ups still? Last I checked, this wasn't 1960."

"Yes, you can. We'll see what tomorrow brings. She's good, but she's also green, not my style. I had to keep correcting her, even though she was doing it all right. Her name bugs me: Snow. Who names their kid that?"

"Give her a chance, dude. She's not from here and is trying to get used to the place. Let up a little, Will. I think maybe you like her but just don't want to admit it."

Will scowled at Jay's smirk. "What makes you think that?"

"Why else would you be so worked up over a chick if you weren't wanting to bang her?"

Jay found this funny and silently laughed, showing off his awesome smile, but Will just found him bothersome and rolled his eyes.

"Remember Tina Suzanne? You threw mud in her hair when we were little and then you took her virginity in high school. You have an odd way of showing girls you like them."

Truth be told, Will couldn't stop thinking about her. The little that he had come to know was that Snow was considerate and attractive. Maybe his brother was right, but she seemed too young for her to even be in his thoughts.

"Ok, fine, Jay. She's pretty cute, but that girl needs to get her shit together if she's gonna make it here."

All Jay did was shrug. "I really don't see anything she did wrong, unless you're leaving something out. Did it ever occur to you that some people march to the beat of their own drum?"

Will shook his head. "Not in the medical world they don't."

"Whatever. Hey, what are you doing tonight? The Bears game is on."

"Sorry, little bro. I've got a date tonight with the new pharmaceutical rep. On a scale of one to ten, she's a fifteen."

After the manic day he had, all Will wanted to do was relax, and he had a feeling Zoe would help him do just that. The only problem was that the eager young girl with the colored streaks in her hair was still on his mind for the rest of the evening...


	3. Blurred Lines

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snow attempts a do-over with the Gaffney staff; Will notices that Connor is attracted to Snow and suggests asking her out; A rowdy patient assaults Snow, causing Will to jump into action and leads to them having a moment, only for him to ruin it. A surprise from Connor lifts Snow's spirits, only for them to be brought down by Will's reconciliation with Natalie.

**Hi, everybody! Who else is beyond excited for the FOUR WAY CROSSOVER with _Chicago_ and _SVU_?! Or the Star Studded Salute for Dick Wolf at PaleyFest in two months!**

**Thank you so much again to everybody that has followed/favorited the story and reviewed! EngieFangirl, ForeverMandi, Lilli89 and especially my homegirl Ms Isabella!**

**I've decided that I'm going to try my hardest to post new chapters of this story every Wednesday after _Med_ and _Fire_ air, along with _Checkered Heart_ updates every Thursday after _P.D._ airs, except next week I'll be updating these two and my two _Walking Dead_ stories on the 31st because it's my birthday! :) Hint Hint for reviews! I know the scene that transpires in the E.R. may seem a bit over the top, but I had a lot of fun with it, along with putting my own twist on when Connor sent Will the tie :).**

**_Chapter Three: Blurred Lines_ **

**_THE NEXT DAY_ **

Snow once again strolled into Gaffney, hoping that today would be an upgrade from yesterday and could lead to a better week altogether. Last night, Sylvie had taken her to the Zumba class that Cruz taught, which was an absolute blast, also incorporating the drumstick workout craze. Needless to say, nothing could bring her down now.

"Good morning, Maggie!" Snow greeted her with a smile, putting a fresh muffin on the partition.

"What's this?"

"Homemade strawberry muffins, they're my great grandma's recipe. I figured it would be a better ice breaker than yesterday. Boy, what a disaster, huh?"

Hopefully, this would ease some of the tension. Who doesn't love fresh baked goodies?

"Don't think too much into it, honey child. You're the youngest one here, so you're the most likely to get teased, even if we're all business."

"I got it. Thanks, I'm just going to put these down."

Snow hummed to herself, walking into the break room, which luckily was vacant. She put the basket down on the table and her bag in her locker before walking out and bumping into somebody, sending her to the floor.

"Whoops, sorry I'm-"

Snow looked up to see Will gazing down at her in what she couldn't tell was confusion or amusement.

"Oh, Dr. Halstead, good morning."

She could feel her face heating up, why was this happening and now of all moments?

"Good morning, Nurse Jem. I see you've worn another entertaining outfit today."

"Ha, again, still on back order."

**_Still an Asshole Dickhead._ **

"Need a hand?" Connor walked up, reaching out his hand to her.

"Hi, Dr. Rhodes!" She took his hand in hers, her cheeks flushing further as Connor pulled her to her feet. "Thanks."

"No problem, and please, call me Connor." He said with a smile, his blue eyes twinkling.

"Mmkay, hate to interrupt this little love connection here, but I appreciate that you took my advice about your hair." Will pointed to the French braid over her shoulder.

"Oh, thanks. I decided to channel my inner Katniss Everdeen and be The Girl on Fire today."

Will raised an eyebrow at her. "How can you be The Girl on Fire if you're Snow? You'd melt, just ask the little sunbathing snowman on your scrubs."

"Ha, shows how much you know about Disney movies. Olaf is magical and doesn't melt." Snow looked down and pointed at Will's id badge. "Why do you look so glum in your id picture?" She glanced over at Connor's to compare. "Both of you do. Since when did smiling become a crime?"

"It's not that kind of a picture." Will said.

"Speak for yourself, Dr. Halstead." She flipped her badge out from the breast pocket of her top. "The average person smiles at least fifty times a day, and a picture is worth a thousand words, so I've got a thousand smiles."

"Impressive, that and a dollar will get you a cup of coffee."

"Well, either way, I like it." Connor spoke up, attempting to ease the tension. "You stand out, it's easier to find you in an emergency."

"Thanks. I made muffins, so help yourselves. You can have it with that cup of coffee, Dr. Halstead." She waved to them and walked off, hoping that her face wasn't resembling a tomato at this point. The only problem was that she didn't know who was making her feel like this.

Will and Connor watched her, the latter longer than the former.

"You've got it bad, man. Why don't you ask her out?" Will elbowed Connor as they walked into the break room, who couldn't help but smirk.

"What are you talking about? If anybody has a thing for her, it'd be you. I see you're not going to let up on the teasing anytime soon, are you?"

"Just giving her a hard time, all in good fun. It'll further build her character, she's either too bubbly or too shy. Besides, I'm already spoken for." Will smiled, thinking of the crazy hot sex he had with Zoe last night and would be having again later in the day.

"Snow's a sweet girl, think about letting up a little." Connor sunk his teeth into a muffin. "Wow, and she can really bake, too. These are amazing!"

Dr. Connor Rhodes was the epitome of the classic "frenemy", there was no way that Will was about to tell him that the assumed annoyance he had with Snow was covering for his denial. Maybe Jay was right and he was acting out because he liked her. That couldn't be the case, right? It's just because she was new, there was still an allure there that would most likely wear off in a week.

**_THREE AND A HALF HOURS LATER_ **

"Dr. Halstead, Dr. Rhodes, I need you." April said, beckoning them from the examination room.

They followed her out of the main floor as a gurney was rolled in and a man was screaming, lying on his stomach.

"What do we got?" Connor asked.

"White male, mid-forties, raccoon bite to the buttock. Wife says he was out getting the morning paper and didn't see the raccoon on the porch." Replied the EMT.

**_"AGH, SON OF A MOTHER-BROTHER!"_ **

The man kept screaming, dressed in nothing but a grubby tank top, boots and a hunting hat and a pair of tighty whities with a bottle of vodka in his hand.

"Bobbie Sue, this is all your fault!"

A woman in a tube top and shorts followed behind the gurney. Who dressed like that and where did they live, the boonies?

"Johnny, quit blaming me! I told you not to get the paper in your underwear!"

"On my count, 1, 2, 3!" Will commanded as they lifted him from the gurney onto the bed, sliding the board out from under him. The man now identified as Johnny was still complaining.

"I don't need no E.R! Get me out of here!"

"Sir, I'm going to need you to calm down, we can't treat you in this condition." Connor said. "Everybody get gloved up."

"Looks like we're going to need disinfectant and a rabies shot, we'll know more once the wound is cleaned." Snow grabbed the necessary items.

"Johnny, get a grip!"

April put her hand on the woman's shoulder, trying to escort her out. "M'am, please have a seat so we can tend to your husband."

"Shit, motherfucker, god damnit! I don't wanna pay no insurance bills! Obamacare can kiss my ass!"

Connor looked over at April and Snow. "We're going to have to restrain him, there's no other way."

Unfortunately, that was the wrong thing to say, making Johnny's eyes widen.

"What?! You're gonna restrain me?!"

"I'll do it." Will volunteered, but Snow shook her head.

"It's fine, we've got it."

Snow took one side and April took the other as Johnny continued to scream obscenities.

"Get yer fucking hands off of me!"

He raised his free arm up and brought the bottle down onto Snow's arm, who let out a yelp when it smashed all over her, a vodka puddle on the floor. Everybody was in shock over what had transpired, especially Will, who jumped into action as soon as he saw her arm bleeding.

"Shit!" He rushed over, grabbing Snow by her wrist.

"Will-" Connor said, but he shook his head.

"I'll clean her up, just get that maniac under control!" Will dragged Snow off across the room. She turned around to see Connor jabbing a tranquilizer needle in Johnny's arm, which finally got him to stop his screaming and slump back. The whole thing had happened before she could even register it in her head.

 

"Thanks, Dr. Halstead, but I could have cleaned myself up on my own. It wasn't as important as that patient."

Snow watched him wash the blood away and remove the mini shards of glass. He was quite good with his hands, definitely what her father's side of the family would call "doctor's hands".

"It's my job, that patient was a flight risk. You're a nurse, you're pretty much a doctor's right hand, which means you're a vital asset. Except if I tell you that I'll do something, I'll do it, so listen to me. There's no reason to show off."

She studied his features, which were rather stern, matching his vocal tone.

"I wasn't trying to show off, I was trying to help. It's part of the job."

"Well, maybe you should start listening or the next bottle will be hit over your head instead of your arm and you might not be as lucky."

He looked up at her, annoyance and slight concern in his eyes. What had she done in two days that had ticked him off so badly? The only time she had ever been lectured like this was by her coaches, superiors nonetheless, but still.

"Dr. Halstead, I'm sorry, I don't know what else to say. I'm just trying to do the best I can and simultaneously get adjusted to my surroundings."

Will nodded, wiping her arm off and putting Neosporin on. "All I'm saying is be more careful. You lucked out by just getting a few scrapes." He had actually gotten panicked when the bottle broke, who wouldn't? In a way, he kind of liked her mini display of defiance by trying to restrain the jerk, it showed her moxie and spunk.

"I will, I promise. So, did you and Dr. Manning make up from yesterday?" Snow asked, hoping to once again alleviate the tension. Why was this always happening?

"No, we haven't. I really shouldn't have made that "stop thinking like a pregnant woman" comment."

"It was kind of harsh, but it was in the heat of the moment. Although, you also have something of a point. Pregnant women have raging hormones, it's like living with constant PMS for nine months, which gives them lots of crazy thoughts and what not."

"And you have experience how?"

**_God, does he always have to be so arrogant?_ **

"My mom was pregnant six years ago with my baby brother, so I know firsthand. I also know firsthand that nothing says "I'm sorry" better than a gift basket. Pickles, ice cream, chocolate and cheese, you're good to go."

She smiled, which was when he noticed that she had uneven dimples, which added to her charm and before he knew it he was smiling, too.

"Yeah, I'll definitely do that. Hey, what color are your eyes? I'm just now getting a good look at them, but I can't really tell."

"It seems like they change colors all the time, I guess it depends on what I'm wearing. It says grey on my driver's license, but I'm convinced there's some specks of violet."

"Well, you have beautiful eyes."

Yes, while this was one of Will's pickup lines, it was a factual statement in this case. Snow's eyes were beautiful and inviting, holding an innocent comfort, her dark lashes voluminously going up in every which direction.

"Oh, th-thank you."

It was making him rethink how hard he was on her.

Will was diverted from their stare down when he saw Zoe waving to him from the partition. He smiled and waved back, getting back to reality.

"Alright, so all you need to do is put Neosporin on it for a couple days and it'll be fine. You be a good girl now, ok, Jem? Say hi to the rest of the Holograms for me."

He got up and patted her on the head on his way out, not knowing why the hell he did that and feeling moronic, mentally smacking himself on the forehead.

**_What the hell is going on with me? This is stupid, she's a kid. At the same time, she's not bad to look at._ **

Snow turned around, watching him walk up to Zoe. She was feeling rather discombobulated at the moment. Did he like her or was he personality-challenged?

"Uh, what just happened there?"

She looked up to see April standing in the doorway.

Snow smiled and shrugged, getting up and joining April in the hallway. "Your guess is as good as mine." She looked over to see Will walking off with Zoe. "He's confusing, that's for sure. I can't get a read on him."

"Don't get too hard on yourself, it's only been two days."

"That's true."

Except Snow ended up thinking about it through the rest of the day. Through sneaking into the storage closet to stuff her face with Ho-Ho's, sketching wildly in her journal at lunch, and helping the doctors.

"Hey, Snow, you got a minute?" Connor asked, walking up to her as she finished helping Dr. Choi apply a cast on a man's broken leg.

"Yes, we were just finishing up."

Connor, on the other hand, was incredibly easy to figure out. He was very sincere and quite charming, not to mention friendly and handsome.

"What's up?" She asked once they got in the hallway.

"I wanted to check and see how you were doing, you seemed kind of shaken up. Who could blame you, right? I think we were all freaked out."

Snow was touched with his consideration. "Thanks for checking on me. My arm is a little sore, but luckily it was nothing more than a few cuts. Dr. Halstead took good care of me."

She nodded her head over at Will from the other side of the room, who happened to be watching them in a non-discreet manner. The embarrassment sinking in for all three of them, Will covered up by waving, which Snow reciprocated. He couldn't help but wonder if Connor was taking his advice and asking Snow out?

"I'm glad you're ok and I'm sorry I couldn't have been the one to help."

She smiled at Connor. "That's very sweet of you, I really appreciate the thought. Your kindness has been a huge support for me, I feel like I'm not so alone. How about next time if anything crazy like earlier happens or if ninjas invade the place, I'll tend your wounds and you tend mine?"

"You've got yourself a deal."

There was something about Snow that Connor was infatuated with. Probably how pure and sweet she was, always plucky and sunny no matter whatever insult or comment she got from Will. Connor was convinced that Will was the one that liked her, but he was going to take his advice, on his own terms.

 

"Snow?" Maggie called out as she walked by on her way from the restroom.

"Yes?" She walked over to the partition, wanting to know what was possibly going on.

"This came for you." Maggie set down a shiny black box tied with a purple ribbon.

"Hmmm, I wonder what this could be."

Snow untied the ribbon and opened the box, figuring it was a present from her parents until she pulled back the tissue paper. Inside the box was a gorgeous light turquoise cashmere scarf folded in a neat square. Her mouth flew open in a delighted smile as she picked up the card, recognizing the familiar Rhodes logo.

**_Keep on pushing through, the first week is never the easiest- C Rhodes_ **

"Wow! This is so pretty! I've always wanted an Hermes scarf." Smile still in tact, she ran her fingers over the fabric, loving every second.

"How's the white picket fence looking?"

"Excuse me?"

Snow turned around to see Will over her shoulder, but she was in too good of a mood to take his comments.

"I can just see it now, that scarf will lead to many things. You and Connor in suburbia with your two perfect dark haired, blue eyed kids, all with the Rhodes last name."

She couldn't help but laugh in his face over what he just said. "You do realize that's probably one of the most ridiculous things that anybody has ever said to anybody ever in the history of the world, right? Besides, why so bitter? You were a plastic surgeon in Manhattan, last I checked that doesn't exactly spell poverty level."

All Will did was shrug. "Hey, I'm just pointing out the facts. Boy meets girl, boy buys scarf for girl, I bet he'll ask you out next. Be sure to thank me in your wedding speech."

Snow shook her head, watching him walk off. On impulse, she decided to follow him, wanting her comeback. As she rounded the corner, she pulled herself back when she saw Will talking to Natalie. He was going on and on about what he sent her. Natalie had a smile on her face and told Will he was forgiven before walking off, Snow being the only one to see him do a fist pump.

She was happy her suggestion worked, it was never fun when friends were fighting, but she also felt a little disappointed. For the rest of the day, instead of only thinking of the dark prince that gave her the spectacular scarf, she also thought about the redheaded doctor with the cocky smirk, which had her all kinds of confused.


	4. Sneakabout

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will appears to be jealous of Connor and Snow growing closer; Faces from Connor's past appear; Snow and Kelly have a discussion, implying that they had spent some time together; Will, Snow and April work on an OD victim with a small child; Snow catches Will and Zoe in a compromising position, the former wanting to pay her off. Before he can apologize and invite Snow for drinks, Will catches Connor asking her out, making him regret his behavior.

**Hi, everybody! How has the past week been?**

**Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed, especially delilah montague, fallingforfiction, FirePDMed, HeadWalkerz, Lilli89, Mrs. R0B0T, Ms. Isabella and UKgirl71! Be sure to check out their stories!**

**I need to get on posting the Pinterest board! Now, it may seem like Will is OOC in the most recent chapters of both my stories, but it adds to the story. Also, I know some of you may not be happy with my selection for the antagonist, but please keep the flames to yourselves!**

**_DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN NOR HAVE ANY AFFILIATIONS WITH MERMAID. ALL PROPERTIES OWNED BY TRAIN, RESPECTIVELY. I ONLY OWN MY OWN ORIGINAL IDEAS AND CHARACTERS._ **

**_Chapter Four: Sneakabout_ **

**_A COUPLE WEEKS LATER_ **

**_"My treasure map was on your skin_ **

**_Beauty in the water, angel on the beach_ **

**_Ocean's daughter, I thought love was out of reach_ **

**_Till I got her, had I known it could come true_ **

**_I would have wished in '92, for a mermaid just like you_ **

**_Whoa, just like you, whoa"_ **

Softly singing/humming "Mermaid" by Train and in a very good mood, Snow walked into the Gaffney break room. It had been almost three weeks since she started work and things had definitely improved for the better.

With the exception of a train collision, a girl with a supposed eating disorder and a bigot who turned out to be a percentage black, there wasn't anything too overly exciting that had happened. Snow knew it wouldn't always be like this and she couldn't wait. What she lacked in social skills she made up for in her work, which certainly impressed the other doctors. Her co-workers were more outgoing and friendly... save for Will Halstead.

"Aren't you a little young for Train? You seem more like a One Direction kind of girl to me." He glanced over at her from one of the monitors.

Snow rolled her eyes and gagged. "Does that comment include a barf bag? Although, "What Makes You Beautiful" is insanely catchy, but not like "Mermaid". I've always wanted to be a mermaid, every time I was in the water I'd pretend I had fins."

"Chuckie" was probably the most confusing person Snow had ever met, a walking juxtaposition. One day he'd be completely condescending and contradicting her every move, the next he'd be nicer but kind of awkward, there was never really an in between. Quite frankly, it drove her nuts to the point where she'd lay awake at night figuring out why he was like this.

"Oh yeah, insanely catchy. Come on, Snow. We won't judge you too harshly if you admit that you have Harry Styles posters hanging up."

"Maybe you're the one with Harry Styles posters hanging up and just don't want to own up to it." She laughed to herself as she put her bag inside her locker. "If it makes you more or less intrigued, I was singing "Chandelier" by Sia on the way over. My taste is rather eclectic."

"Yeesh, is that the one with the little girl spazzing out in the flesh colored leotard?"

"Well, that's one thing we have in common, because I also think it's rather bizarre."

"Hey, everybody. Hi, Snow." Connor walked in and waved at her, which made the younger girl smile.

"Hi, Connor. How are you liking _Breaking Bad_?"

Over the past couple weeks, she and Connor had grown rather close since he happened to catch her drawing in her journal and struck up a conversation about anime, which led to Netflix recommendations. They got along pretty well, but he had yet to ask her out, perhaps she was getting mixed signals.

"Loving it, I can't believe I missed out all these years."

Will nodded. "Yeah, I don't think it could have ended any other way than making Walt die."

"...and I haven't gotten that far yet." Connor trailed off.

Snow couldn't help but smirk, knowing that he said that on purpose. "We wasted the good surprise on you, Will. You might as well spill the beans about The Mother dying and Ted ending up with Robin on _How I Met Your Mother_."

"Oh, my god!" Natalie started choking on whatever health food her mother-in-law was having her eat. "The Mother dies?! Barney just proposed to Robin!"

Will rolled his eyes. "Nice going, Jem."

"Anytime, Fry."

"Huh, who?"

Snow bit her lip at his confused expression she knew he was wearing, suppressing a laugh before turning to face him. "Hmm? Well, you keep calling me Jem, so I figured I'd give you a nickname also, and you kind of look like Fry from _Futurama_."

"What? Get out of here, I do not."

Natalie started nodding as she held up her phone. "Sorry to say, Will, but the newbie may be right about something after all."

"Thanks."

Dr. Manning was another confusing one, making comments that were either half-compliments or half insults. If Will still wasn't with Zoey, Snow wouldn't be surprised if he started up with Natalie. Maybe he should, then she'd finally be able to go to sleep.

The emergency alarm blaring brought Snow out of her thoughts. They all rushed out and what was being wheeled in nearly knocked them out of their shoes. A man was on the gurney impaled with a twisted glass blown chandelier the color of flames in his stomach. Snow could feel her skin change colors at the sight, but swallowed the lump in her throat and followed Connor, who seemed stunned.

"Peter? Claire? What happened?"

The woman, now identified as Claire, was frantic. "The new chandelier was being installed at the store and it just fell on him!" She was thin with brown hair in a bob and blue eyes.

Connor nodded as Peter was rolled in. "I got it. I'm going to do everything I can."

**_2:00 pm_ **

"Wow, that was unreal. I can't believe it actually happened! You'd expect it to happen in some twisted horror movie or show, not in real life."

Snow wiped the sweat from her brow as she and Sarah were sitting on the floor in the hallway. The removal of the chandelier had taken about two and a half hours, the fire department had to saw most of it and Connor did the rest in surgery.

"Yeah, it was crazy, I could never imagine something like that. This is why I think I'd be better as a lab doctor than in emergency medicine."

Snow elbowed her. "Don't be so hard on yourself, girly. There's nothing to worry about. You were on top of your game in there."

Sarah smiled, some of her nervousness fading away. "Thanks, I appreciate it."

Snow felt like she could relate to her, both of them being on the shy/quiet side. It was only with Will that Snow's inner Liz Lemon came out, unleashing her wit and sarcasm.

"No problem. So, what's going on with you and Poindexter?" She smiled as Sarah laughed. "What? I saw that little interaction over the Splenda. Nobody's that crazy about artificial sweetener. He's got it for you."

"Ha, we'll see."

"Hey, Jem. Still going to be singing "Chandelier" after today?" Will asked as he walked by.

"Good one, Fry."

Just as Sarah was going to ask Snow what the deal was with her and Will (it had been the topic of conversation between her, April and Maggie recently), they were interrupted.

"Hey, guys."

They looked up to see Kelly Severide standing in front of them.

"Hey, Kelly. What's going on?" Sarah asked.

"Not much, we were just about to leave. Uh, Snow, can I talk to you for a bit?"

She nodded. "Yeah, sure." She turned to Sarah as she got up. "I'll be right back."

"What's going on, Kelly?" Snow asked once they got outside. She wasn't sure what it was Kelly wanted to talk about, but it made her begin to feel anxious.

"It's about the other night."

"Oh?"

It had actually been Chili's idea to set her up with Kelly. She had heard through the grapevine that he was a player, like Will, but what did she have to lose? He turned out to be a very nice guy who knew how to have fun, which is what she needed, especially after her first date with Kim's coworker Greg, or as everybody called him "Mouse". While he was devastatingly handsome with the most gorgeous pair of clear blue eyes she had ever seen and very polite, he seemed a bit uninterested and quite reserved, he didn't even kiss her good night.

"I had a lot to drink, and you don't seem like the kind of girl to-"

Snow shook her head. "I'm really not, but I figured I should start coming out of my shell more, which you definitely helped with."

Kelly laughed. "Yeah, I guess I did, huh?"

"Hey, don't worry about it." She squeezed his shoulder. "It was mutual, two people having a good time. It didn't go to far and nobody got hurt so no harm no foul. We're friends, right?"

He nodded. "Yeah, definitely. I'm glad we talked. You're a pretty cool chick, you know that?"

Snow came to Chicago to start a new life and have adventures, and so far it had been an unbelievable ride.

"Thanks, I try. Why don't you pass that along to Dr. Halstead? I think he may need some convincing."

"He's not such a bad guy once you get to know him."

She scoffed with a laugh. "I'm sure. Why don't you hit me up some time and we'll go to pool or something?"

"Sounds like a plan, you can count on it."

They were about to lean in for a hug when the emergency bell started blaring again and red lights flashed all over. The ambulance pulled up and started wheeling out a gurney.

"I'll see you later, ok, Kelly? Good talk!" Snow ran up to Sylvie and Chili wheeling out the gurney, hurrying into the ER with them. "Hey, what do we have?"

"White female, twenty three years old, Hadley Jennings, mosh pit gone wrong at an afternoon band rehearsal. There's a laceration on the side of her head and bleeding from the ears, the bass player said she had been drinking all day. The mother is on her way over here."

"Got it, we're going to have to get her in for an X-ray once she wakes up. Dr. Halstead, I need you!" Snow called out, he came running over as they got the girl into a room. "Twenty three years old, severe head trauma and intoxication."

"On my count, 1, 2, 3!" The girl was lifted off the gurney and onto the bed. She was pretty but too thin with an excessive amount of makeup and choppy maroon colored hair.

"We should run a toxicology to see if any drugs are in her system, she may have OD'ed, too."

"Where is she?! Where's my daughter?!"

Will and Snow looked over to see a heavyset blonde coming inside, holding hands with a little girl.

"Mommy!"

"That must be the family."

Looking at this girl, you couldn't tell that she had a child at all, she seemed like she led a pretty rock n' roll lifestyle. The moment she was hooked up to machines she opened her eyes.

"Hadley, can you hear me? Do you know where you are right now?" Snow asked, but Hadley's eyes rolled in the back of her head and she began to convulse and the machines trilled with panic.

"She's having a seizure, I need 1 mg of Ativan, stat!" Will shouted. The blonde overheard and came running up screaming.

"Hadley, Hadley, no!"

Snow turned around as April came rushing in with the Ativan, putting her hand on the woman's shoulder. "M'am, I'm sorry but we're going to have to ask you and your little girl to wait in the waiting room until we have her stabilized."

She shook her head. "You don't understand, that's my daughter and this is her daughter! What's happening?"

"Mommy! Mommy!" The little girl wailed.

"M'am, I will come and get you as soon as her condition changes. She is in the best hands possible with Dr. Halstead, I promise."

Snow looked over her shoulder to see that Hadley's seizure began to stop and she closed her eyes again, laying motionless.

Will nodded his head at her. "Thanks."

She returned the nod. "You got it."

 

"Excuse me, miss?"

Snow looked down when the small voice tugged at her pants. It was Hadley's daughter, all blue eyed and pigtailed haired. She couldn't have been older than two, maybe three.

"Hi there, little girl. Is everything ok?"

"Do you know where Mommy is? Grandma is on the phone and won't tell me, but I want to see her, it's been such a long time. Why is she here?"

Just seeing this little girl made Snow think of Leaf, she couldn't just walk away from her. What if somebody walked away from him? She crouched down to be on the little girl's level.

"What's your name, sweetheart?"

"Penny." She replied.

"Hi, Penny, I'm Snow. Your mommy fell and had an accident." Snow didn't know what else to say, but then she got an idea. "I know he already talked to your grandma, but how about if I get Dr. Halstead to come and explain it to you so you can understand?"

She nodded. "Ok, I just really miss her."

"I know, honey. Why don't you go back to the waiting room and we'll come get you? I think there's a _My Little Pony_ book in there."

"Ok."

Once Penny had returned to her seat, Snow could feel the anxiety bubbling up. Maybe she overstepped her boundaries and shouldn't have made a promise like that, who knew how Will was with kids? Her heart started racing wildly, her pulse quickened, she rummaged in her pocket for the emergency stash of gummi bears, knowing she was on the verge of an anxiety attack. Rounding the corner, she opened the door to the storage room, rushing inside as she shoved a handful in her mouth and stopping dead in her tracks.

Every other time she had sought solace in this storage room, it was empty. Right now was a different story, and the sight in front of her was quite disturbing at this moment.

Will had his pants pulled down to his ankles while Zoe was completely naked on her knees, pressing her breasts together as he aggressively thrust forward into her face.

"I love that you let me do this, it's so hot."

"I love it when you explode all over my face."

Snow didn't need a clearer view to know exactly what was going on, she had seen this kind of thing before in porn and had even done it before with Skeet after some persuasion, but she was completely frozen right now. How had they not heard her? Maybe since they hadn't she could get away without noticing, except for her mouth was faster to react than her feet, letting out a gasp.

They looked over, equally in shock, staring at Snow. Will's heart stopped for a second, knowing he was royally fucked.

"Shit!"

He backed away from Zoey, and when Snow saw the entire view she was really speechless, her face turning various shades of red. No wonder he's so cocky... She quickly snapped out of it and turned to leave, so quickly that she smacked into the door and hit her face.

"Ow! Damnit!"

"Get the fuck out of here!" Zoe shouted at her.

While Snow was tempted to take one more glance at Will, she hauled ass out of there, the impact of the face palm hitting her eye immediately.

"Ahh, crap! This hurts!"

Nobody was around when she left, but she didn't know if Will and Zoey would be granted the same luck. Now Snow really wouldn't be able to sleep at night, the image of them was burned into her brain, or more specifically, the image of Will Halstead with his pants around his ankles.

Rubbing her eye as she walked into the hallway, Snow saw Connor having a heated argument with a tall man that had thinning white hair and an evil look on his face. It was then she remembered that Penny was waiting for her and Snow didn't want to let her down. Taking a deep breath, she boldly walked over to Connor.

"Excuse me."

They looked at her, the glare in the other man's eyes was particularly wicked.

"Hi, I'm sorry, but I need your help with something, Dr. Rhodes. If it's not a problem?"

Connor nodded. "Not at all. You take the lead." He walked past her and she picked up the pace to catch up.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt your discussion."

He shook his head. "Don't apologize, you were doing me a favor. What's the problem you're having?"

"It's about the head trauma that was brought in. She does have brain swelling, Dr. Choi took her up to the OR to relieve it but there was a large amount of alcohol and meth in her system. Her two year old daughter is asking questions and I have no idea what to tell her."

"Say no more, I can handle it. I thought she was Dr. Halstead's patient?"

"She is, but he's preoccupied and little kids get impatient quickly. That and she's very frightened."

"Right, I understand. Come on, let's go."

Snow was grateful he didn't ask where Will was, she didn't know how quickly she'd be able to make up that lie.

 

"Damn, this sucks."

Snow finished applying concealer on her now bruised eye, knowing that people would ask eventually. She could always say she tripped and fell, couldn't she? Either way, there was still the embarrassment of what she had witnessed and she couldn't help but wonder if Will and Zoe would turn this around and try to get her in trouble?

The thought of it was enough to send her into a full blown panic attack, but she forced herself to pull it together. Just as Snow was leaving the bathroom, a mysterious hand grabbed her and pulled her into a corner, holding onto both her arms, making her on edge but unable to leave.

"Don't say anything, got it?"

She looked up to see Will was the one that had grabbed her, knowing the color was draining from her face, but all she could do was nod. Her heart rate picked up looking at the flexed muscles of his arms, her eyes wanted to flutter from the cologne he was wearing. It was masculine yet citrusy at the same time, and whatever it was smelled amazing on him, how had she never noticed this before? Skeet didn't wear cologne, he swore by Axe Body Spray.

"Why were you in the storage closet?"

Her throat suddenly became dry and she started stammering. "Uh, well, I..."

**_Stop it, pull yourself together._ **

Snow straightened up and looked him dead in the eye. "I wasn't feeling well, I just needed a minute to myself. Hadley's daughter was asking about her mother, I was on my way to find you so you could tell her."

**_Maybe the question should be why were you in the storage closet?_ **

"Fine, I get it. How much will it cost me to make you forget what you saw?"

"What?" She raised her eyebrows in confusion as he pulled out his wallet.

"I'm willing to pay you off so you don't blab your mouth about this to anybody. I'm well aware of the consequences, believe me."

A picture in his wallet caught her by surprise, and she further flattened it out to get a better look.

"When was this?"

The picture was of Will with a bunch of small children on the sand, and he was actually smiling in it. He looked down to see what she was looking at.

"Oh, it's from last year. I try to do Doctors Without Borders when I can, and this is when I went to Madagascar."

"Wow, I never would have thought. You don't really strike me as the type."

"Well, I am. So, how much?"

Snow shook her head. "I can't be bribed, and you don't have to. I'm a very loyal person, I'll keep your secret. Just don't be a moron and do it again."

She walked away, leaving him baffled. He thought she would have been more freaked out, she certainly looked it when she caught them. Maybe he underestimated her...

 

"Look, Snow. I'm sorry about earlier, I didn't mean to come off like such a jerk, I panicked is all. It was also uncalled for that Zoe was so rude to you. I think we got off on the wrong foot and should start over. Do you want to go for a drink after work later?"

Will nodded to himself. "Yeah, that sounds great. Of course she'll say yes."

After much thought, he had decided that he hadn't been especially nice to Snow and that it was undeserved. The more he pondered it, the more he realized his brother was right: He was being such a jackass because he liked her, and she wasn't some naive sap like so many other girls he had come across. Yes, she was timid at times, but she was smart and it left him intrigued.

Rounding the corner, he was relieved to find her in the break room, but just as he was about to walk up to her, Connor beat him to the punch.

"Hey, Snow."

She looked up from the book she was reading and smiled. "Hi, Connor! How are you?"

Will walked to the other side of the door, that way he'd be able to see and hear without being noticed.

"You were a really great help today with Peter, and I wanted to show you how appreciative I was."

"Oh, you don't have to do that."

**_Fuck, he's going to ask her out._ **

"Oh, but I insist. I have tickets Saturday night for Les Ballet de Monte Carlo's latest show _Choré_ , it's a blend of Hollywood musicals against historical backgrounds, I was wondering if you'd like to go with me? You know, as my date?"

Will felt his heart sink when he saw Snow nodding with a small smile on her face, her uneven dimples almost barely peeking through.

"Ok. That'd be really nice."

She looked down, which was when he noticed that her cheeks were tinted pink. Will turned away, resting his head back against the wall, mentally kicking himself.

Just when he realized he may be starting to like Snow, Connor swept in and got her first. There was no way she'd pick him over Connor's good looks, charm and money.

**_Damn me and my big mouth._ **


	5. Blabbermouth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snow and Connor have a lovely first date, with both of them sharing some of their pasts and a sweet good night kiss; Snow crashes into Will at the super market, who pesters her about the date; Will and Snow inadvertently admit that they like the other one.

**Hi, everybody! How has the past week been?**

**Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed: fallingforfiction, TheIrishShipperholic, Lilli89, Ms. Isabella and UKgirl71! Be sure to check out their stories!**

**These past few weeks have been quite hectic for me. I was going to post on the 31st, my birthday, but there was just too much going on and I didn't finish in time. Thank you, my fans, for your patience and support! Enjoy! :)**

**_DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN NOR HAVE ANY AFFILIATIONS WITH CRAZY FOR THIS GIRL. ALL PROPERTIES OWNED BY EVAN AND JARON, RESPECTIVELY. I ONLY OWN MY OWN ORIGINAL IDEAS AND CHARACTERS._ **

**_Chapter Five: Blabbermouth_ **

"Sylv, I'm nervous."

Snow heavily sighed as she flipped her hair, teasing it out to provide more body.

She was wearing a black on black brocade strapless bustier lace dress adorned in sequins and beads, as well as it's matching bolero jacket, topping it off with a pair of pumps that were the closest thing to matching the scarf Connor bought for her.

"Why? Connor's a total catch, I know about five girls that would sell their soul for a date wth him." Sylvie said as she walked into the bathroom with a pair of earrings.

"I feel like at any moment I'm going to wake up and it will all be a dream. I mean, why could he possibly be interested in me? We're opposites."

"What's not to like? You're a great girl, Snow. Don't doubt yourself."

"It's not that I doubt myself." Snow got up and grabbed her clutch. "Well, maybe it is. Connor seems really mature, I kind of feel like it would be like going on a date with my dad. I've never dated anybody that much older than me before."

Skeet, no matter how much he tried, could never be as sophisticated as Connor. It was a miracle that he even finished college. He was more interested in shooting his guns, skateboarding, sex and smoking pot. Snow didn't regret the almost six years they spent together, but she knew it wasn't in the cards for them to be together, especially after shutting him out. Now that she was shedding some of her skin, she was ready to explore the relationship horizons.

"Just go out and have fun, be yourself."

"You're right. If I go in like a nervous wreck, everything will be disastrous."

The doorbell rang, signaling that Connor had arrived.

"There he is. Thanks for the earrings." Snow gave Sylvie a quick hug before walking down the stairs.

"You're welcome, and remember what I said! Have a good night!"

"You, too!" Snow grabbed her coat and opened the door, a smile on her face. "Connor, hi!"

"Good evening, Snow. You look beautiful." Connor was wearing a navy suit with a black button up shirt and a navy tie, looking ever so dapper.

"Thanks. I'm not too underdressed, am I? It's been a while since I've been to an event like this."

He shook his head and led the way to his car parked in front, which was a metallic blue Mercedes Benz C-Class, opening the passenger door for her. "Not at all, but you should have told me if you needed a dress. I very easily could have sent one over."

"Thanks, that's really sweet. You're so considerate, Connor. Maybe that should be your nickname, Connorsiderate."

The moment the words came out of her mouth, she wanted to smack herself across the face.

**_You're an idiot, you know that?_ **

Luckily for her, Connor cracked a smile.

"That's cute, I'll have to remember that one." He said with a laugh as he started the car, not seeing how flushed her cheeks were now.

 

"So tell me about yourself, I want to know all there is." Connor said once they gave the waiter their orders. They were at Next, a hip art deco restaurant in Chicago's Fulton River District, which specialized in seasonal menus with everything from honey prawns to Cornish hens.

"Oh, believe me, that story will bore you to tears. It's not even half as interesting as your time in Riyadh. What's it like over there?"

"Very intense and jarring, but I wouldn't take it back for anything. I'm sure that's not true, Snow. What I do know is you're a caring person, a talented artist, and you have great taste in Netflix recommendations."

Snow smiled, feeling herself relax a bit. "I try. Well, Frankenmuth isn't as big as Chicago, there's only about five thousand or so people there, but everybody is pretty amicable for the most part. My dad is one of four psychologists in town and my mom runs a bakery, people come from all over Michigan just for her blackberry pie."

"That sounds pretty good."

"It is, I'll have to make you one some time, you know, to thank you for the scarf and taking me out tonight."

Snow was trying her hardest to look at him, but her eyes kept flitting all over the place. To her hands, the tablecloth, the light fixtures, why was this so hard?! Perhaps if Connor weren't so devastatingly handsome it would be easier. At that moment, she realized that she NEVER had a problem making eye contact with Will… and WHY was she thinking of him on her date?!

"The pleasure is all mine." Connor squeezed her hand, which is when she finally looked at him. "You're a great girl and I've enjoyed having you around the past few weeks."

"Thanks. I really owe you one, you were a saving grace that day. Anyways, I'm pretty close with both of my parents, I'm a total Daddy's girl. I have a little brother named Leaf… oh, wait, I already told you about him."

"A little, but I don't mind hearing again."

"Are you sure?"

He nodded. "Yes." He was so easy going and patient, how was he still single?

"Alright. He's six years old, half angel and half daredevil. I swear, if he could live in the trees with his action figures, comic books and Duplo blocks, he totally would."

Connor smiled at how excited she got talking about her family. "It's nice how tight-knit you are with your family, there's times where I kind of wish I had a different family."

Her smile disappeared. "I'm sorry, now I feel bad for going on and on about mine. I hope you don't think I was rubbing it in, because that wasn't my intention at all."

He shook his head. "Of course not, it's no problem. As you saw the other day, I have a rather complicated relationship with my family. That was my dad and sister when Peter was brought in."

She could see how Claire was his sister, they had the same eyes and face shape. "That was your dad yelling at you the other day? Why?"

"I don't know why my father doesn't like me, maybe because I'm not docile enough to be easily manipulated by his evil ways. I'm close with Claire and my nephew Colin, my grandpa was my hero as a kid, and my mom passed away when I was ten."

"Oh, no, that's awful. I'm so sorry." She boldly reached across the table for his hand. "How, if I may ask?"

Connor usually didn't share that story with new people, but there was something so inviting and innocent about Snow that he felt he could trust her with his secret. "She committed suicide by throwing herself off our roof, she was having a horrible battle with depression."

Snow nodded in understanding, knowing exactly what that was like. Her depression had gotten worse since the surgery, she had even written out a suicide letter more than once. In the end, she never had the guts to do it.

 

"Thank you for such a lovely evening, I had a wonderful time." Snow said as Connor opened the door for her in front of the townhouse. "The show was fantastic."

"It was, and I'd like to see you again if that's alright? We don't have to tell anybody at work, even though word somehow got out about tonight."

"There's ears all over Gaffney I'm sure, but that would be really nice. Maybe we could go see a movie. _Steve Jobs_ is coming out soon, I'm so excited!"

He chuckled, getting a kick out of her youth. "Sounds like a plan. I'll call you tomorrow, ok?"

"Ok. Good night." Snow gave him a kiss on the cheek. Once she pulled away, he put his hand on her face, leaning in and kissing her. It was really nice, his stubble tickling her face and strong Altoid taste awakening her senses. The kiss was slow, lingering, not rushed like she was used to. When they pulled away, Snow knew her face was burning up.

"Good night." Connor said with a smile.

Snow started madly giggling, knowing what a dumbass she looked like, but couldn't stop as she backed away up the steps, her nervous laughter kicking in. "Alright, super. You're a good kisser- uh, I mean, that was really nice, one for the books. Call me." She stumbled on the last step, losing her shoe.

"Are you ok?" He asked, trying to stifle a laugh.

She nodded, picking her shoe up. "Uh huh, like totally, I'm good, I'm great. Bye!" Snow threw herself into the house before she could start babbling anymore embarrassing nonsense.

"Wow, they really don't get any dumber than me."

Connor smiled to himself as he got in his car. Snow wasn't like most women he dated, who were successful in their careers but vapid when it came to everything else. Her quirks and shyness made her very genuine. Maybe this could actually work out, it had been a while since he had a serious girlfriend. After all the emotional damage and turmoil he had endured, it was time to turn over a new leaf and get into the swing of a normal life.

**_THE NEXT DAY_ **

"Did you have a good time, darling?"

Snow nodded to her mother on the phone as she strolled into the frozen food section at the super market.

"I did! The show was something else, I couldn't believe it."

"And how was Connor? Do you think you'll see him again?"

"Connor was great, I do like him. What's not to like? He's dashingly handsome, charismatic, down to earth. I think maybe he's just a bit too mature for me."

It was still kind of surreal that somebody as refined and worldly as Connor would take an interest in a small town girl like her. Since she had been paying more attention to her mother, Snow hadn't seen the cart coming toward her until crashing into it.

"Whoops! Sorry, I-" When she looked up, her apologetic face quickly turned to one of annoyance. "Oh, it's _you._ "

"Aww, and here I thought you'd be jumping for joy at my presence."

Snow scoffed and rolled her eyes at the face she was both delighted and perturbed to see. "As if!"

Will chuckled. "Hmm, maybe I should call you Cher instead of Jem."

"Snow, who is that? What happened?"

She looked down. "Nothing. I'll call you back, Mom. Love you, bye." Snow hung up and gave Will her full attention, that cocky smirk still on his stupid face. "Sorry, my mom FaceTimed me and I got distracted."

He looked into her cart and raised his eyebrows. "Holy cow! You're either constantly stoned or running a frat house. What's with all the munchies?"

Snow hoped that she wasn't blushing, but she could feel her face heating up over all the candy, cookies, chips and other goodies the cart currently held. "It's not all for me, it's for Movie Night."

Deciding to even the playing field, she looked in his cart. "Jeez, bring enough condoms for the rest of us, Halstead? Looks like somebody isn't trying to repopulate the earth when the apocalypse hits." She started rifling through the colorful boxes. "Skyn, Lifestyles, Durex Pleasure Pack, Trojan Magnum, ha! You are definitely full of yourself."

"Well, you tell me. You got quite the view in the closet."

Snow laughed awkwardly and continued looking in his cart, hoping he didn't see her swallowing the lump in her throat. Was he coming on to her? "K•Y Yours and Mine, huh? Wow, you and Blondie are certainly adventurous." She looked up to see Will shrug, something of a grimace on his face.

"Eh, not really. We sort of broke up."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Truth be told, Snow was kind of relieved, that chick looked clingy. "Now you can pursue Natalie."

He looked away at that statement. "We're just friends."

"Well, there's a pool at work for when you two will finally get together, but you didn't hear it from me."

In a way, Snow was sort of glad about his reaction. She didn't Natalie was a good fit for him at all.

"My dating life is pretty dull, honestly. I'm more interested in hearing all about your's. Specifically, your date with Connor."

"Ha! You wish I told you everything. Sorry, Will, you'll have to wait until the book comes out."

She waved before moving past him, to which he followed.

"Come on, Jem. Everybody knows that I'm your best friend at Gaffney, so you might as well spill the beans and tell me."

"I'm sorry, you must be living in an alternate universe. Besides, I don't kiss and tell."

"Ahh, so there _was_ kissing. All the girls are going to be so jealous that the newbie got to kiss the famous Connor Rhodes."

Snow pulled out a bag of frozen strawberries and bananas. "Not gonna lie, kind of sounds like you're the one that wants to kiss him." She glanced over her shoulder at the mortified look on his face.

"Pfft, not even close. Was it everything you wanted it to be?"

"You're not getting anything out of me, Halstead."

"Yes, I will."

This little song and dance continued throughout the rest of the store, Snow even went down the feminine hygiene aisle to dodge him, but he stayed there despite his face almost matching his hair when she picked up a box of Tampax. She had really underestimated what a GIANT pain in the ass he was, finally caving in after they had checked out.

"Fine, I'll tell you. It was a fantastic evening, and he asked me out again, so who knows what will happen?"

"Oh." Will was glad that she couldn't see his disappointed expression. He kind of hoped that Connor would strike out and he could sweep in, but who was he kidding?

"Jeez, you're even parked next to me." Snow groaned, recognizing the grey Range Rover from the Gaffney parking lot. "It's like no matter what, I can't get away from you."

He jumped in and pulled her bags out. "Here, I got it."

She stopped, completely baffled. "That's fine, I've got it."

"No, it's not a problem. Save your strength for grazing the snacks."

"Urgh, I told you they're for Movie Night!"

"Alright, alright, I didn't know it was such a touchy subject." He didn't have the heart to tell Snow that Natalie had seen her getting at least ten bags of treats from the vending machine and devour a pack of Double Stuff Oreo Cakesters. She had managed to gab about it with April and Maggie, which annoyed him.

"Would you believe me if I said I was going to ask you for drinks before Prince Charming did?" Will asked after closing her trunk, wanting to kick himself for letting that blurt out of his mouth. It made Snow burst into laughter, so he'd be able to play it off as a joke.

"That's hilarious and I wouldn't. How about if I said that I stay up late into the night thinking about you?"

**_Why did I just tell him that? I hope he takes it as a joke._ **

"Of course you do. I'm a stud."

"Whatever helps you sleep at night. Well, now that that's settled. Bye, Felicia!" She waved her hand to the side and opened the door to her car.

"Who's Felicia? I thought it was Fry."

Snow looked over, giving him that smile that he found undeniably cute. "If you have to ask."

Both of them had the same thought as they were leaving the other.

**_Phew, that was close._ **

As soon as Will turned the car on, "Crazy For This Girl" by Evan and Jaron played over his stereo. Watching her drive away, he actually listened to the lyrics, which applied to him, or rather, his current predicament.

**_"Would you look at her_ **

**_She looks at me_ **

**_She's got me thinking about her constantly_ **

**_But she don't know how I feel_ **

**_And as she carries on without a doubt_ **

**_I wonder if she's figured it out_ **

**_I'm crazy for this girl"_ **

He didn't know if he was crazy for her or just plain crazy...


	6. Dreams Take The Lead

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What starts out as a dream about Connor takes a surprising turn for Snow; after finding out some traumatizing news, Snow takes her anger out on Will, which includes being impulsive and immediately regretting it.

**Hi, everybody! Ugh, I've been sick all week, it's given me some unfortunate laziness and slight writer's block! Lol and _PUH-LEEZ, DO NOT_ get me started on the _Med_ promo for next week, I would have liked to see what else was going to happen in the episode. I am just _SO NOT_ feeling those two.**

**Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed: fallingforfiction, Jo, Lilli89, Ms. Isabella and UKgirl71! Be sure to check out their stories, they are quite awesome!**

**I plan on updating again hopefully tomorrow (this chapter was split in half) as well as _Checkered Heart._ Be sure to leave some reviews to brighten my sickness up! :)**

**_Chapter Six: Dreams Take The Lead_ **

**_A FEW WEEKS LATER_ **

_Snow was soundly sleeping when she heard her name being called._

_"Snow. Snow, wake up, honey."_

_"Hmmm?" She slowly blinked her eyes, but everything was still blurry from sleep. Once they were halfway clear, she couldn't believe who it was. "Connor?"_

_"Hi."_

_Indeed it was Connor Rhodes, wearing only a pair of black male bikini bottoms, his blue eyes shining from the moonlight peeking through the window, giving his awesome body and dark tattoos an angelic glow._

_"What are you doing here? What time is it?"_

_"The time is now. I'm here for you, Snow. I really like you and I think we should take our relationship to the next level, explore more intimate horizons."_

_Ever since going to the ballet, they had gone out on two more dates, one to see a film called **The Danish Girl** and the other to an art gallery for an exhibit of Renoir paintings. Snow came to further learn that Connor was very attentive, patient and refined, the latter being expected from the upper class world he came from, but she loved listening to stories of all the adventures he had gone on. The only problem was she was still doubtful on where a girl like her could fit into his world, except it seemed as if he had already figured it out for the both of them._

_"You mean...?"_

_He nodded. "Yes. I want us to make love."_

_Connor leaned in and kissed her tenderly. She was still too sleepy to even question anything, but she did want this. Connor was such a wonderful guy, always honest and never confusing, Snow knew she'd be crazy to let him go. Giving in to and deepening the kiss, she wrapped her arms around his shoulders to pull him in closer. His Dolce and Gabbana cologne faded away into something else, a scent that she knew from somewhere else before, masculine yet citrusy..._

_Snow pulled away and gasped at who was on top of her._

_"Will?! What are you doing here?!"_

**_"And what the hell happened to Connor?!"_ ** _She was tempted to ask, but knew it would be rude. She looked down at his body, which was muscular and cut up, abs that were making her salivate, just as nice as Connor's, not to mention the boxer briefs he was wearing perfectly outlined his package._

_"Snow, I'm sorry that I'm always such an asshole. It's not on purpose, I can't help it. Well, okay, maybe a little bit is on purpose. You look so cute when you let me have it."_

_"What are you talking about?" Snow sat up, holding the sheets to her chest._

_"I'm talking about how it kills me watching you with Connor when I'm the one you should be with."_

_Will pulled back the blankets and smiled at what she was wearing. "How'd you know my weakness is girls that wear comic book panties?" He asked, referring to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles tank top and boy shorts that Leaf got her for Christmas._

_"What about Natalie? Everybody knows you like her." Snow squeaked, feeling her heart beat picking up little by little._

_"What about her? We're nothing more than friends. I'm crazy about you, Snow. You're the one I want to be with, that I go to sleep dreaming about."_

_She opened her mouth to speak but was cut off when Will pressed his lips to her's. His kiss was warm and soft at first, but then became more demanding, his tongue pleading for entrance. Snow found herself unable to push him off, instead opening her mouth, their tongues slowly stroking back and forth._

_Yes, she really liked Connor, but she also found her attraction to Will deepening whenever they interacted. What was wrong with her? The problem was that she had never liked two guys at once or had two guys like her at once._

_Snow chose to push that to the back of her mind, grabbing him by the shoulders and switching their positions so she was on top, on her hands and knees looking down on him. Will's hands travelled down her body with gentle caresses, almost surprising her. He was such a playboy, Snow figured he was in and out, but right now was so sensual. Of course, that could all be part of his suaveness._

_Becoming lost in his kisses, she let him take control, turning them over so he was on top again, kissing her neck. She didn't know how it happened, but his full length was sheathed inside, making her gasp, grabbing a handful of his hair with one hand and the back of his shoulder with the other._

_"Mmm, Will..." Snow breathed out, moans making themselves present._

_"You feel so good, Snow. I want to take my time with you." He replied, kissing her face again as she nodded._

_"I want that. I do, I really do." Snow grabbed his face in her hands, kissing him heatedly as he slid in and out of her, both of them moaning heavily..._

"Will... Will... Don't stop...!" Snow moaned in her sleep, causing her to gasp and shoot up shortly after, awakening from her dream. She looked around the darkened room to find it empty, along with herself being sweat drenched and wet.

**_Oh, my God. Did I just dream I was having sex with Will Halstead?! Dr. Asshole Dickhead?!_ **

Snow threw off the covers and grabbed a pair of pajamas, on her way to the bathroom take a shower, all the while shaking her head. "I have got to stop watching _True Blood_ before I go to sleep."

**_THE NEXT DAY_ **

Snow heavily sighed, getting lost in thought as she washed her hands, having just finished looking over a patient with Dr. Choi. Some local prankster thought it would be hilarious to bring a leaf blower into a matinee showing at a movie theatre and pretend that it was an actual gun, his joke resulted in him actually getting shot and a mom being trampled to death. She had been holding onto her son, who just had a few cuts, the rest of the injuries brought in were pretty minor, but the hospital was complete pandemonium mobbed with press everywhere for the man dubbed a hero for shooting the leaf blower boy.

She had done her hardest in avoiding both Will and Connor, just seeing them was enough to make her blush over last night's dreams. As far as Will went, Snow convinced herself that it was nothing more than her subconscious, which was what dreams consisted of. Although, it did leave her turned on...

"Snow," Maggie called out to her. "you have a phone call, it's from your father." She motioned, holding up the front desk phone.

Confused, Snow walked over and took the phone. Why would he be calling her on the hospital line? "Hel- Whoa, whoa, whoa! Dad, you've gotta get Mom to stop crying, I can't hear you! What happened?" She put her hand over the receiver and looked at Maggie. "Would it be at all possible for me to take this call somewhere else? I don't want to tie up the hospital line."

Maggie nodded. "Sure, go ahead, honey. Take as long as you need." She already knew what had happened, but she also knew it wasn't her place to say anything.

"Great, thanks so much." Snow took her hand off the receiver. "Guys, I'm going to call you back in a minute." She handed Maggie the phone and walked off to get her own. Her mom had sounded hysterical in the background, which had Snow incredibly worried...

 

Will walked up to the roof to get some coffee and catch a breather. It had been a crazy day with this shooting and now it was beyond chaotic swarmed with press and police. It was actually Jay who suggested he take a few minutes to himself. He was about to prepare the coffee when he heard what sounded like panic. Curiosity got the better of him as he rounded the corner to see the familiar blue and magenta streaks he couldn't get off his mind. She appeared to be visibly upset about something, pacing while on the phone.

"I just can't believe this happened! No, don't worry. I'll be there as soon as possible, I promise. You need me. I love you, bye."

Once Snow hung up the phone, she full on burst into tears, more like sobs, grabbing her hair.

"Oh, my god! Oh, my god! Oh, my god! This can't be happening! Why, why, why?!Haven't they been through enough? First with me and now him, when does it end?!"

She reached into her pocket for a baggy, but when she opened it too hurriedly the contents went flying all over the ground, which Will saw were Sour Patch Kids. He felt horrible watching her like this, so he boldly approached her. She shouldn't be alone and obviously needed some support.

"Snow?"

She looked over, hiding her surprise to see him with irritation. "What do you want? Leave me alone, I don't need your asinine antics right now!"

"I'm not doing anything, I just wanted to see what's wrong." He deserved her lash out, he hadn't been the nicest person since she started at Gaffney.

"A lot, that's what's wrong. Everything is crashing down all at once, I can't breathe, everything is turning black." She bent over slightly, hyperventilating. "I don't have anything on me! Not my secret stash or paper bag, I'm dying, I'm gonna die right here on the roof."

"Snow, calm down, you're having a anxiety attack. You have to take deep breaths." Will put his hand on Snow's shoulder to steady her, but she shrugged him off.

"I know what I'm doing! I just don't get why now, why at all. This is the last thing I needed. I came to Chicago to start my life, but everything has just been going down the sewer!" Snow roughly wiped her eyes, mascara staining her cheeks.

"What are you talking about? That's a lie and you know it. Everybody here likes you, you don't even need to ask Connor twice that he thinks you're special."

His concern after all this time was enough to send her from zero to sixty in mere seconds. Will Halstead had inadvertently stepped into Snow's line of fire. Why was he caring now? Was he bored or genuine? Either way, she was on the verge of losing it.

"It's you! It's all because of you! Ever since the first day I walked into this hospital, you and your little girlfriends have made me into a target of derision and mockery! You've been nothing but a rude, stuck up, egotistical jackass jerk to me and undermined my every move no matter how accurate it is. I'm not an idiot!"

She wasn't in control of her movements, watching that her hands were on his chest, pushing him backwards. Will caught his balance and didn't fall, but the look on his face said everything, he was shocked and hurt. Snow immediately felt guilty, her look of anger fading away, knowing she had gone too far.

Before she could even utter the words "I'm sorry", she was grabbing the collar of his doctor's coat and smashing her lips on his. Will was thrown for a loop of surprise, not expecting this but finding himself unable to push her off, rather, he put his hands on her shoulders.

When Snow opened her eyes to find him staring at her, that was the moment everything set in.

"Oh, my gosh! I did not just do that!"

Will opened his mouth to speak but she cut him off, holding her hand up.

"No, don't say anything. I have to go." She ran off crying, her vision so blurred she practically ran into Natalie when she finally got inside.

"Whoa there, watch where you're going, kid. There's pregnant people causing traffic jams now." She smiled at her, but all Snow did was nod in return.

"Sorry." She mumbled, looking down until arriving at her locker, opening it frantically.

"Are you ok?"

Natalie was the last person Snow wanted to confide in. What was she going to do, tell her that she kissed her best friend that everybody thought they should be together?

Snow shook her head, shoving everything into her bag. "No, it's not. I have to go back home and I don't know how much time I have." She brushed past the pregnant woman, seeing Will out of the corner of her eye coming towards the break room.

**_Oh, fuck._ **

Snow made a mad dash out of there, past the front desk, where April was calling out to her, and smacked right into Connor.

"Hey, fancy running into you at this time." He smiled warmly at her. "What a day, huh?"

"Yeah, I guess." She tried to walk off, but he noticed something was wrong and followed her.

"Snow, what's wrong? Did something happen?" Connor caught her elbow, seeing her tear streaked face.

"Snow!"

They both turned around to see Will dashing over, and the last person she wanted to know was Connor.

"I'm sorry, Connor, I need to go back home before it's too late. I'll text you when I get there."

Snow squeezed his hand before running off to the seclusion of her car. It was inappropriate of her to be thinking of that kiss when there were more important matters at hand. Right now, her mind was a foggy jumble, but all Snow knew was that she had to put the drama with Will aside for another day, she was needed elsewhere.

Will caught up to Connor, watching Snow back out of the parking space and drive away.

"Why did you let her leave?"

"I have no idea what's going on. She said she had to go back home, I didn't know if she meant here or Frankenmuth. What, did you forget to insult her today?"

Judging by the phone call, Will knew where she was going, he also knew what had to be done, no matter how impulsive it was.

"I've gotta go."


	7. From The Other Side

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will follows Snow to Michigan, where he meets her still attached ex-boyfriend Skeet and her parents, Vince and Maia; Snow fabricates a white lie in order for Will to properly examine her little brother Leaf, who unintentionally reveals a secret; Vince asks Will to look out for Snow; On the way back to Chicago, Will attempts to pry answers from Snow but ends up revealing some of his past; Not wanting to be lonely considering the events of the day, Snow asks Will to spend the night.

**Hi, everybody! Two updates in one week? I'm on a roll! :) What an ending to the last chapter, huh? ;) Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed: fallingforfiction, ixistargirl89ixi, Lilli89, Ms. Isabella! Be sure to check out their stories, they are quite awesome!**

**For Snow's parents I now picture Tony Goldwyn from _Scandal_ and Bridget Monayhan from _Blue Bloods,_ both great shows! I've had _Z Nation's_ Nat Zang (10k) as Skeet since the beginning. I still haven't found a dossier for Leaf yet, but he's a cute! Just picture a young Elijah Wood circa _The Good Son_ but with shorter hair. I was told so many times when I was younger that we looked alike! Haha.**

**I plan on updating _Checkered Hearts_ later today! I just got back from a photo shoot and I'm still sick so I'm resting and editing the latest chapter.**

**_DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN NOR HAVE ANY AFFILIATIONS WITH HELLO OR CAN'T FIGHT THE MOONLIGHT. ALL PROPERTIES OWNED BY ADELE AND LEANN RIMES, RESPECTIVELY. I ONLY OWN MY OWN ORIGINAL IDEAS AND CHARACTERS._ **

**_Chapter Seven: From The Other Side_ **

**_SIX AND A HALF HOURS LATER, BRIDGEPORT HOSPITAL, MICHIGAN_ **

Will walked into the emergency room of Bridgeport Hospital in Michigan. It had been a relaxing yet tedious trip, but he was overly anxious. Looking around, he hoped this was the right hospital, because he didn't know where else to go and hadn't even bothered looking for her car in the parking lot. Luckily, Will spotted Snow right away down the hall, her head in her hands. He could spot those colored streaks from Mars if he had to.

"Snow?"

Snow turned around and looked up, her eyes saucer wide and her mouth hanging open at who had just called out to her, not noticing that her parents were looking over as well.

"Will? Uh, I mean, Dr. Halstead. What are you doing here?" She walked up to him, tugging the tops of her sleeves and covering her hands with them in fists.

"You seemed really shaken up following what happened and left in such a hurry. I wanted to make sure you were ok."

"How did you even get here?"

"Maggie gave me your address from your file. I just barely caught the train, took a cab from the station to your house, nobody was home so the old man next door sent me here."

In the five and a half hour train ride, the thirty minute cab ride to Frankenmuth and the twenty minute ride to Bridgeport, Will hadn't come up with a single reason WHY he travelled so far to see her, she'd probably think he was crazy.

He was glad to see Snow had calmed down since earlier. She had changed out of her scrubs, now wearing jeans and an oversize University of Michigan pullover hoodie. Her face was completely free of makeup, making her look even younger than she already did, her hair out of the ponytail and hanging down to almost her elbows.

Snow wasn't sure if she should be touched or not, she was stunned. "You know you could have just called or text me. It's in my file, too. Or waited until I got back. I'm not worth all this trouble."

"Yes, I know, but I figured this is something better approached in person. You know we'll have to discuss what happened, right?" Will was still in his scrubs but had his backpack on him, why he hadn't changed on the way here she didn't know. Either way, he looked pretty cute with his backpack.

She nodded, knowing the inevitable elephant that had followed him from Chicago. "I know, but I don't think now is the right time, don't you?"

"Of course not."

"Is there anyway we could leave Dr. Charles and Sharon Goodwin out of it, just keep it between us?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I think so."

"Snow!"

They looked to see a lanky young man with black bed head run over and lift Snow off the ground in a hug.

"Thank God you're here!"

Will watched them, assuming that this was her boyfriend, maybe they had gotten back together since the big date with Connor. He couldn't help but feel a little crushed. Did he really expect a girl as sweet and pretty as her to be single for long?

"Skeet, put me down!"

Snow pushed on his shoulders and jumped off, nearly stumbling into Will, who looked baffled.

"Should I even ask?"

The boy now identified as Skeet gave him the once over. "Who are you?"

Will pointed to the ID badge on his scrubs, which he also hadn't bothered to take off. "I'm Dr. Will Halstead, Chicago Med. Who are you?"

"I'm Private-E Skeet Zanger, Snow's fiancée." He tried to wrap his arm around her but she flinched away, feeling Will's shocked expression.

"We broke up months ago and you're not in the army! You work at the gun range! Skeet," Snow turned to him with a more relaxed expression. "I know you're here for the best interest of me and my family, but I think you should come back later. It should really be just me and my parents."

"You mean me, your almost husband, has to leave, but Dr. Fancypants gets to stay?" He pointed angrily at Will, which made the discomfort rise.

"That's a different story, he doesn't live twenty minutes away like we do! Please, Skeet, don't question me on this."

Skeet sighed heavily but nodded. "Alright, fine." He looked over at Will and saluted him. "Peace out, Dr. Hoffsteader. Bye, Snow."

They watched him walk away before Will looked down on her, but Snow cut him off. "Trust me, I know how it looks, I almost made a big mistake."

Will held up his hands in defense. "Hey, I don't judge. So what was the emergency?"

"My little brother fell out of his tree house. It took forever to get a doctor to see him, you'd think I'd have some pull having worked here for two years, but sadly I don't and this doctor is a transfer who doesn't even know me."

"Right. Is he ok?"

"He had a concussion and tried to keep falling asleep but he's awake now, he lost two baby teeth and he has some cuts. I just hope it's not serious though."

"I can stay here with you until you find out. It's not like I have anywhere else to go."

He hadn't meant to add that last comment, it had merely slipped out, but luckily she didn't seem to notice.

"Thanks, I appreciate it. Come on, I'll introduce you to my parents."

Snow was tempted to grab Will's hand to bring him over to her parents, but after what happened earlier, it was best that she restrain herself.

"Mom, Dad, this is Will Halstead, he's one of the doctors I work with at Gaffney. Will, these are my parents, Dr. Vince and Maia Greyson."

"Hi." He waved politely.

"It's nice to meet you."

Snow's dad gave him the once over as they shook hands. "Ahh, so _you're_ the famous Dr. Halstead we've heard so much about."

Will glanced over at Snow, who shrugged. "Oh, uh, thanks. I'm not sure what you've been told, but I can tell you that your daughter has become a favorite already."

Maia smiled at that, her eyes puffy from crying. "That's wonderful."

Her parents were tall and attractive, her dad had short light brown hair and hazel eyes while her mother had shoulder length dark brown hair and green eyes. Snow looked like both of them, with her mom's facial shape, but Maia was quite thin. She reminded Will a bit of Olive Oyl, albeit a striking looking version of Olive Oyl.

"Mr. and Mrs. Greyson?"

They all glanced over to see a bald man with glasses approaching them.

"Hi, Dr. Edwards. How is everything?" Maia asked.

"We just got Leaf's X-Rays back. Most of the damage was done to the arm he landed on, it was a clean break, the gash on his collar bone has a butterfly bandage on it and he's cognitive now, if he hadn't been wearing that helmet, it would have been a lot worse."

"But Leaf had a concussion when he came in." Snow interjected. "Is there a possibility that there could be long term damage at some point? Do you think that this runs the risk of his speech impediment returning or that he'll need leg braces again?"

All Dr. Edwards did was shrug. "I'm sorry, that goes beyond my knowledge of an E.R. doctor. I'd recommend taking him to a specialist, but he is walking just fine. Keep the splint and cast clean, ice the injured area for 20-30 minutes 4-5 times a day. I can take you back there now and he will be discharged within the hour." He looked at Will. "Family only, sorry."

Snow spoke up. "He is family, he's my husband." She grabbed Will's hand, who looked at her in disbelief, as did her parents. Fortunately, Dr. Edwards didn't care or seem to acknowledge this, being a lazy E.R. doctor. "I used to work here under Dr. Agarwal, they know me very well, I can show my family back."

"Fine, if you say so."

"I'm your husband now, huh?" Will whispered as Dr. Edwards left, trying not to smirk in the seriousness.

"Don't flatter yourself, Halstead. Shut up and play along. You'll thank me later."

Sure, it was impulsive once again, but it was better than him waiting out in the hallway twiddling his thumbs, but why did she get a spritz of giddiness with her lie?

"Jeez, that Dr. Edwards sure wasn't much help." Maia shook her head in disgust . "I'm telling you, Snow, it seems like this place has gone downhill since you left."

"It seems like it. Hey, I just got an idea. Why don't we have Will take a look at him?"

"What?" Vince asked.

"What?" Will raised his eyebrows in confusion.

"Honey," Vince wrapped an arm around his daughter. "Is that really necessary? Don't worry, we can afford to take your brother to the specialist."

"I know, Dad, but Dr. Halstead is a renowned doctor in Manhattan and Chicago, I think he knows what he's doing." Snow turned to Will with a wry smile. "You don't mind, right?"

He scoffed nervously, scratching his head. "Uh, well, I haven't had a child patient in a while, only once back in medical school."

Will had very little to no experience with children, he had lost contact with his friends that had families, but how bad could it be? It was relieving that even though Snow lashed out at him, she still respected and valued him as a doctor.

"I have faith in you." She squeezed his hand. "Just do standard procedure. Come on, let's go."

They were led to a room by a nurse where a small boy with an arm cast was laying on a bed.

"Leaf, you've got some company." Said the nurse before walking away.

"Hi, honey. How are you feeling?" Maia asked.

Leaf looked over to see his family and smiled, revealing a missing front tooth. He was an adorable child that looked exactly like their father, Will couldn't help by think of Jay when he saw him. "Snow! You're here!"

"Leaf!" Snow pushed past her parents and onto the bed, wrapping him up in her arms. He appeared just as equally excited to see her, giving her a big hug.

"I thought it was just a dream that you were here."

Snow shook her head, pulling away, which was when Will noticed the tears in her eyes. "No, you weren't dreaming, I'm right here. Leaf, how did you fall out of the treehouse? What happened?"

"I was trying to fly, it would have been awesome if I didn't trip on the floor. Look," He reached across the tray table and held up a blue tooth shaped container. "I lost my loose tooth in the front! And another one! The tooth fairy is going to give me money now!"

"Leaf, I've told you a thousand times that you can't fly." Snow put her hands on his shoulders. "You have to be more careful when you do things, you can't forget that ever."

"Snow-" Vince interjected, but Maia put her hand on his shoulder, shaking her head.

"Buddy, do you know what I would have done if anything happened to you, if I lost you somehow? It would destroy me, you're the Woody to my Jessie, kiddo, the Luke to my Leia. I'm just so glad you're ok." She wrapped her arms around him and silently cried. While she was a good nurse, Will had never seen her react to something so passionately. Today was one for a lot of firsts.

"Leaf," Snow pulled away and wiped her eyes before motioning Will over. "This is my friend Will, he's a doctor at the hospital I work at and I'm going to have him look you over. You do whatever he asks, ok?"

He nodded. "Ok."

"Do you need anything?" She asked Will as she stood up.

"Lucky for you, I was in such a hurry I left with all my stuff on me." Will sat on the edge of the bed, extending his hand out. "Hi, Leaf. It's nice to meet you, you've got quite the fan in your older sister."

"Thanks." He shook his hand, revealing the missing teeth.

For Leaf being his first child patient in years, it wasn't half bad. He passed everything, his lungs and sight were working perfectly, he had no problem with tongue twisters.

Will looked over at Snow and her parents once he was finished, smiling. "He's fine, there doesn't seem to be any problems as of now, he's high functioning." He looked over at Leaf. "You're good to go, just don't try to fly again."

Leaf nodded. "I won't." Suddenly, his face lit up and he pointed at him. "Hey, I know who you are! You're Gingy Doctor!"

Will chuckled in confusion. "I'm sorry?"

"Leaf!" Vince grumbled.

"Who?" Will asked.

"Gingy Doctor! There's a whole bunch of you that work with my sister, like The Avengers! Gingy Doctor and Handsome Doctor and Sassy Nurse and Bitch Doc-"

Snow cut him off before he could say anything further by putting her hand over his mouth, to which he mumbled against it. "Whoa-k, there! I think you've had too much sugar today."

"I didn't have any candy today!" Leaf said into her hand.

Snow laughed nervously, her face burning up. He obviously overheard some conversation where she was going on and on about the staff at Gaffney.

Will looked over at her in a slight smirk. "You've got some 'splaining to do, Lucy."

**_God Damnit. Now I'm screwed._ **

**_AN HOUR LATER_ **

"I'm so tired. Mommy, can I have macaroni and cheese tonight? And ice cream?" Leaf asked as Snow carried him into the parking lot.

"Yes, honey, but not too much ice cream or you'll get a headache."

"Alright." He rested his head on Snow's shoulder and closed his eyes.

"Wake him up every hour, just to check, ok?" Snow said as she opened the door of her mom's Prius. "Bye, Leaflet." She hugged her brother tightly as she buckled his seatbelt.

"Wait, Snow. Do the Minion voice before you leave."

She rolled her eyes at her brother's wicked grin. "Leaf, no..."

The little boy pouted. "Please? I'm injured."

"That's not your get-out-of-jail, get what I want card, but fine." Snow cleared her throat before making her voice higher and speaking in the beloved Gibberish of the adorable yellow creatures, which made Leaf crack up and clap his hands. Once it was over, she turned back to Will, her cheeks still red from knowing he was watching her. "If you tell anybody at work..."

He laughed and shook his head. "Don't worry about it. My little brother wouldn't go to sleep unless I'd do Donald Duck's voice."

Snow smiled at him. "I'll have to hear it some time then." She turned back to her brother, giving him a kiss on the cheek. "Bye, kiddo. I love you."

"You, too, Snow." He waved at Will. "Bye, Gingy Doctor."

"Leaf!"

"Oh, it's fine." Will squeezed his foot affectionately. "Bye, Leaf. Be good now."

"Hey, Will, can I talk to you for a second?" Vince asked, which made Will a bit apprehensive. Was he going to scold him about all the teasing towards Snow?"

"Yeah, sure."

They walked out of ear shot from Snow and her mother.

"I know that you and my daughter have more or less butted heads, but she's a sweet girl, not too familiar with big city life. It's kind of why we wanted her to stay in Michigan, she's been through a lot."

"I've always been told I'm kind of stubborn, but I don't think any less of Snow. She's a good girl, everybody loves her at the hospital. I think she's adjusting well."

He wasn't going to tell him about her meltdown on the roof, Will could tell by his body language that he was wracked with exhaustion.

"Regardless of what she's mentioned, I can tell that you probably have some concern, you came all this way. I guess what I'm trying to say is could you keep an eye on Snow for us?"

Will nodded. "You have my word, sir."

He could tell that Vince was a good natured but overprotective father, what he couldn't understand was why he'd let his only daughter date a moron like Skeet?

"Ready to go?" Snow asked as she and Maia walked up. "You can ride back with me, do you mind driving though? I'm exhausted." She threw him her keys.

"No problem."

She turned to her parents, giving them a big hug good bye. "Bye, guys."

Will noticed that the hug went on for what seemed like an eternity. He found it pretty sweet how close Snow was to her family and felt like he learned a lot more about her today.

"Bye, pumpkin. Here's some money for gas." Vince pulled his wallet out. "Don't say no, make an old man happy and take it."

Snow nodded. "Thanks, Daddy. I appreciate it."

"It was nice meeting you, Will." Maia said.

"You, too. Both of you." He shook their hands good bye.

"Stay safe, ok, Snowflake?" Vince asked, which was when Will saw he had tears in his eyes. Why was he crying?

"I will. I'll call you guys when I get home. I love you."

"Love you, too."

Snow and Will waited until the car drove off before walking over to her car.

"Thank you for coming here today. I don't know why, I hope to find out, but I'm kind of glad you did."

"I was worried about you, I'm not as much of an ass as you think I am. You have a nice family, that little brother of yours is a crack up."

"He's a fighter. In a way, he's been fighting his whole life pretty much. Leaf was born a premie. He's had all sorts of problems, as you overheard."

"That must not have been easy." Will said as they got in the car.

"No, it wasn't. My parents have been through more than what any parent has or should, with Leaf and with me." She looked over at Will, both of them buckling their seat belts. "That's a story for another time, one you're going to have to earn."

Will nodded, starting the car, wondering what it could possibly be. "I look forward to it."

**_TWO HOURS LATER_ **

They were more than halfway to Illinois and Will could barely get a word out of Snow, nothing more than a "yes" or "no" answer. She had fallen asleep about twenty minutes after they left the hospital, the stars in the sky acting as his company, and only woke up when "Hello" by Adele came on the radio, softly singing along. That song had been playing all week, if not longer, but there was no denying that the full-figured British songstress was beyond phenomenal.

"Why did you kiss me?" He asked, hoping to break the silence, but no such luck.

At least another five minutes passed by before Snow looked over at him.

"Why did you follow me to Michigan?"

Now it was his turn to not have an answer. Even after four hours between the hospital and driving, his mind was still blank. Perhaps he was too afraid to admit the truth, that he wanted to know why she had kissed him? Or that he was really worried for her? Either one would show vulnerability, and he was already vulnerable enough to her as it is.

"That's an answer for another day, one you'll have to earn."

Snow rolled her eyes and scoffed, before mumbling under her breath the word "whatever".

"Look, I'm not trying to piss you off. You've had a hard day."

"Right, because I haven't had a hard day the month and a half you've been a bidaily pain in my ass, right?"

Will opened his mouth to speak but she cut him off.

"Just forget everything, ok? I am so not in the mood right now."

She turned the volume up on the radio. The last thing Will had wanted to do was upset her, but it seemed like he couldn't do anything right.

**_"You can try to resist_ **

**_Try to hide from my kiss_ **

**_But you know_ **

**_But you know that you can't fight the moonlight_ **

**_Deep in the dark_ **

**_You'll surrender your heart_ **

**_But you know_ **

**_But you know that you can't fight the moonlight_ **

**_No, you can't fight it_ **

**_It's gonna get to your heart"_ **

Will watched her in his peripheral vision, how she'd get lost in the music. Bopping her head, singing along, making different facial expressions. How much longer was he going to deny to himself that he thought she was positively adorable? Will Halstead didn't go for sweet and adorable, he went for uptight and bitchy, which is probably why everybody thought he and Natalie were so compatible.

"Is that the song from _Coyote Ugly_?"

Snow looked over at him, deciding she had been a bit harsh earlier. "Yeah, it is."

"Thought so. Your mom looks like one of the waitresses in that movie, the tall pretty brunette."

"Bridget Monayhan? I could see it. So is that one of your spank bank movies or something?"

He shook his head and silently laughed. "Nope. I was a regular at the actual bar back when I lived in New York. My picture is on the wall and everything."

"And you probably hooked up with all the girls, right?" She couldn't help but smile, being able to perfectly picture Will going crazy over the bar dancing beauties.

"I don't know what you heard, but I wasn't always such a womanizer. In fact, I was with one of the bartenders for nine months, I was going to ask her to marry me."

"What happened?"

"She cheated on me with some porno director who made her a star. After that, no more bartenders or dancers for me, it was only socialites."

From time to time he still thought of Cami, the raven haired vixen that stomped on his heart. Maybe it all worked out for the best, because marrying her would have been the biggest mistake of his life.

Snow appreciated how Will had let his guard down a little bit, she felt like she got a better understanding of who he was and what he was about. It was just enough to leave her wanting more.

"You're a mystery, Will Halstead, but I'm going to figure you out one of these days."

"Same goes for you, Snow Greyson. One of these days."

They looked over at each other and smiled, lightening the mood for the rest of the ride.

 

"Wow, I'm not the only car here. The station must not be closed yet." Will said as he pulled into the parking lot of the train station.

It was a little past midnight and they were finally back in Chicago.

"Hmmm, I guess not." Snow looked over at him.

They spent the next few minutes staring at each other in silence. Will was tempted to lean in and kiss her, but decided it was for the best if he didn't.

"Well, if that's all, I'll see you tomorrow. Bye." He reached for his backpack when Snow grabbed his wrist.

"Will, wait."

"Yeah?"

Those brown eyes of his looked so lost and full of longing, it made her think of one of those kids in a velvet painting. It was then that she had the courage to ask the question that had been teasing her lips since they left Bridgeport.

"Stay with me? I mean, I know this is sudden, but I really don't want to be alone tonight. At the same time, I'll understand if you say no."


	8. To The Moon and Back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will spends the night with Snow, where he's rejected but finds his attraction for her growing in more than a physical manner, yet questions if it could work; The next morning, Sylvie catches Will leaving Snow's room. Agreeing to keep things to themselves, Snow realizes she really is falling for Will and decides to confide in Sylvie, knowing she can be trusted.

**Hi, everybody! Sorry this update is coming so late in the day! Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed: fallingforfiction, ixistargirl89ixi, Lilli89, Ms. Isabella, TheIrishShipperholic and Ukgirl71! Be sure to check out their stories, they are quite awesome! I plan on updating _Checkered Hearts_ later this week!**

**_DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN NOR HAVE ANY AFFILIATIONS WITH STOP, I'M ALREADY DEAD. ALL PROPERTIES OWNED BY DEADBOY & THE ELEPHANTMEN, RESPECTIVELY. I ONLY OWN MY OWN ORIGINAL IDEAS AND CHARACTERS_ **

**_Chapter Eight: To The Moon and Back_ **

Will hesitated, knowing he should say no, but felt himself nodding. Snow had such a sad look in her beautiful eyes that he couldn't find it in his heart to deny her.

"Yeah, sure. I'll follow you to your place."

She actually beamed, and it made him feel a little less guilty about it. "Ok, thanks so much."

**_TWENTY MINUTES LATER_ **

"Well, this is it."

Will followed Snow inside, looking around at the townhouse she shared with Sylvie. For two girls that woke up incredibly early for work and came home at odd hours, their place was quite immaculate in cleanliness.

"Do you want some coffee? We have a Keurig. Or I could make you-"

He shook his head. "It's alright, I don't need anything."

She nodded. "Ok. Let's go to my room then."

"So tell me about you and Skeet." Will said as he followed Snow up the stairs, to which she shrugged.

"What's there to tell? He was my first adult relationship, I was drawn to how carefree and outgoing he was. Kind of a bad boy that turned out to be a full blown pothead. My parents could see it all along, they thought he was nice but all wrong for me, and they were right. I just wish he weren't so hung up on me still. I don't get it."

Will almost stopped in his tracks at her words. How could she not think highly of herself or see how special she was? Yes, she wasn't perfect by any means, but she was unique and sincere. Any guy would be lucky to have her as their girlfriend.

"Here's my room."

Snow led him inside the lavender colored bedroom. Will looked around, Snow definitely was a kid at heart, this wasn't an adult bedroom at all. The walls were adorned with different posters and magazine cut outs. A desk was in the corner, scattered with colored pencils, a laptop and a sketchbook, which was next to a chest of drawers decorated with a few figurines and picture frames, along with a white vanity and fur stool, makeup neatly organized. A 20" flat screen was on the wall across from a comfy queen sized bed.

"Nice digs."

"Thanks. I'm just going to freshen up, why don't you get out of those scrubs? I'm sure you already had post work clothes on you before you left."

He nodded. "Uh huh."

"I'll be out in a bit. Make yourself at home."

She disappeared into her bathroom. Will hurriedly took his jeans and shirt out of his backpack and put them on. Once he was finished, he noticed that the door to Snow's closet was left ajar. Had it been done on purpose?

Will was unsure if Snow knew he was able to see her undress, the mirror from the closet door reflecting off of the one on her vanity. He knew it was rude to watch, but he couldn't help it. In that moment, his body betrayed him, secretly admiring the curves she concealed under baggy scrubs and oversized shirts.

**_No wonder she keeps that sweet little body hidden away._ **

Her waist went inward and her legs were shapely, her butt had that perfectly perky arch to it. She had just the right amount of thickness in her curvaceous glory, but she was completely toned. He had overheard her telling April about some volleyball tournament she was in years ago, not to mention he had seen her running on more than one occasion, so that was probably how she looked so good.

Will could just tell by looking at Skeet that he'd been unable to properly satisfy a woman in bed, and he literally felt his sexual attraction for her growing. It wasn't until now that he realized her body reminded him a bit of Jennifer Love Hewitt, skinny yet a bit hippy with all the right curves in all the right places.

When Snow came back, she was wearing a pair of black and blue plaid pajama bottoms and a double layered white tank top with a multicolored short kimono.

"Hi."

"Hi."

"You look different in regular clothes." She immediately felt like an idiot for saying that, even if it was true, having become accustomed to him in the red scrubs and white doctor's coat. Luckily, he seemed unfazed and simply shrugged.

"Well, I do have a life outside of Gaffney."

She nodded. "I knew that. So..."

Will shrugged, putting his hands deeper uh his pockets. "So...?"

Snow looked all around the room before her eyes landed on the closest thing to him, which was the poster board of Audrey Hepburn on the wall next to her bed.

"Are you sure I can't get you anything?"

He shook his head. "No, I'm good, thanks."

"Do you want to watch a DVD? I have some new ones."

"Maybe in a bit. Why don't we sit down?"

She nodded, making her way over to her bed. "Ok. Make yourself comfortable, relax."

He watched her laying down on the bed before sitting on the edge.

"Nope, not gonna work." Snow sat up and grabbed Will by the arm, pulling him backwards with her until his head was sinking into the pillows. "When I said relax, I meant it. You've been on your feet all day, not to mention a four hour train ride and car ride, so take it easy." She leaned over and started spinning a switch.

"Alright, fine. Have it your way."

They both looked up as Snow's star projector light turned on, the entire room was now coated in a blueness of stars.

"Whoa, that's trippy. When did you get it?"

"Two years ago my parents bought them for me and Leaf. Just lean back and enjoy the stars."

Will glanced over to see how enthralled she was, deciding now was as good of time as any to make his move. She had to have wanted more than the impulsive kiss this afternoon, right? Why else would she have invited him to her place?

He leaned over and kissed Snow, getting on top of her when she gasped in his mouth as he pulled her hips into his, aligning their pelvises. It had taken her by surprise, but it had been a long day and this actually felt kind of nice. She was able to savor this one, more so than the one before at the hospital.

His thumbs began rubbing circles on her hip bones, which made her arch forward in pleasure, the sensation bringing about something in her. Snow was reminded of the dream she had the night before and decided to reciprocate, her hands on his chest. It wasn't until one of Will's hands attempted to sneak down the front of her pants and the other up her top that she snapped back into reality.

"Wait, wait, what are you doing?" Snow pulled away, looking at him with eyes of innocence, which were met with confusion.

"Isn't this what you wanted?"

"I don't know, is it what you want?" She sat up and tightened the sash on her kimono. A part of her kept repeating the word "idiot" for stopping that kiss, but the logical side was more desperate for answers than affection. "Half the time I have no idea if you even like me."

"If you liked me, your clothes would be on the floor."

Snow looked away at his comment, immediately hurt. "How could you think so little of me? I'm not that kind of girl, the kind of easy lay you're used to."

Will put his hand on her shoulder, feeling guilty for making such a pigheaded comment, knowing it was the last thing she needed. "I'm sorry, I just thought you wanted sex and that's why you kissed me. Why did you? I've wanted to know all day."

She turned around, not looking at him once but wrapping her arms around his neck and burying her face in his shoulder, pulling him down on her level. It took him by surprise, he wasn't expecting it in the slightest. Snow hoped he wouldn't be as rigid, but she knew if they made eye contact she'd probably start crying, being too overly emotional considering the day's events.

"I don't know what I want. I didn't mean to be so abrasive towards you today, my mind was in a tailspin and my emotions were everywhere. You're just confusing, I suppose."

"You're no walk in the park either, kiddo." Will relaxed some, wrapping his arm around her shoulders and rubbed her upper arm in comfort. Emotional girls weren't his strong suit, it's why at almost thirty four he was still unmarried.

"I've been through a lot, Will. I'm strong but parts of me are fragile. No matter what, you never have to doubt my sincerity, which is why I can't say just yet why I kissed you. I don't know, it was a nervous impulse. Is there more behind it? There could be, just like there's probably more behind why you came to Michigan." Snow sighed heavily, taking a whiff of his cologne.

A part of her couldn't help but think of Connor. Was this technically cheating? It couldn't have been, they had only been on three dates and hadn't discussed even being exclusive. She decided to put it to the back of her mind.

"Come on, there has to be a reason why you went a thousand miles to see me."

**_Do you like-like me?_ **

"It was a nervous impulse, Snow. That and how could I miss the opportunity of pretending to be your husband?"

"Ha, sounds like that's all I'm getting out of you for the evening."

She leaned over, messing with the dials on her projector. The stars started swirling in different colors and patterns as "To The Moon and Back" by Savage Garden started playing, the stars synchronizing themselves to the music.

"This is a good song. Too bad they broke up."

"Yeah, they were awesome. This is one of my top four favorite songs of theirs." Snow resumed her earlier position with resting her head on Will's shoulder and her arms around him. "I'm sure this feels weird... but is there any way we can just stay like this, please? It's rather enjoyable."

Will nodded, although she couldn't see him.

"Yes, we can." He wrapped his other arm around her and gave her a kiss on the temple. It was a bit out of character, but it was enough to make her giggle, which in turn made him smile. She was cute, very cute, but also very young. He didn't know if that was workable or not...

Sometime later, they had both fallen asleep in the same position they were in, neither of them moving. Will felt her hand on his stomach, slightly stirring him from sleep. It was a nice feeling, holding somebody to sleep and being held, he wasn't a big cuddler and when he was it was pretty rare. He started to think how maybe it was something he could get used to when Snow's hand slid from his stomach and down the front of his pants.

Still, he thought he was dreaming until she grabbed his shaft, moving her hand up and down. Her touch was amazing, probably because her hands were small, and the last action he had was almost a month ago. He was amazed at how much skill she possessed in her sleep, the delicate flicks of her wrist in different directions were enough to make him cum in seconds.

Maybe now was the time to make his move, but Will couldn't get a good read off of her. She seemed to like him but she wasn't falling all over herself like most girls.

While he may have been a pervert, he wasn't a creep. With deep regret since he was enjoying this so much, Will took Snow's hand off of his erection and wiped it on his jeans before intertwining their fingers together. Being blue balled was enough to keep her secret: Snow was obviously a sexsomniac. He respected her too much to take advantage of such a condition. That and even holding hands with her was nice. Will had always rushed into things with other girls, maybe this is what he needed.

**_6:40 AM_ **

**_"Stop ah nah oo, I'm already dead_ **

**_Stop ah nah oo, I'm already dead_ **

**_I am... all-l-ready dead"_ **

Will woke up to electric guitars and dark drums, almost startling him. The window curtain was closed but sunlight still peeked through the sides and bottom of it. Snow was nowhere to be found, until he heard water running and figured she was in the bathroom.

Snow walked out, brushing her teeth as "Spiderwebs" by No Doubt started playing, and smiled at him. "Good morning, sleepy head."

"Hi."

"I left a spare toothbrush out, how do you take your coffee?" She asked, taking her kimono off and grabbing her scrubs, which still weren't the standard regulation blue scrubs, but instead Mickey and Minnie Mouse. What made her different from the rest he had no idea...

"Uh, black, thanks. What's with this song?"

""Stop, I'm Already Dead" by Deadboy & the Elephantmen, it's the theme song on _iZombie._ It's one of my favorite shows, Liv Moore is awesome and Ravi is hilarious. You should jump on the band wagon."

It was then that Will noticed her chest. Her breasts were a perfect C cup, maybe even a D, but what stood out to him was that she had breast implants. Being a former plastic surgeon, he had performed over a hundred breast augmentation surgeries, maybe even more, but why would a small town girl have breast implants?

Snow smiled at him. "Great, I'll see you downstairs."

 

"Will?"

Upon leaving Snow's room, he came face to face with Sylvie, dressed and ready for work.

"Uh, Sylvie, hi."

"Hi. What are you doing here?"

Snow had been complaining up a storm about Will since starting at Gaffney, what on earth was he doing in their house, leaving her room?

"It's not what you think." Will scratched the back of his head in apprehension. "Maybe Snow should explain it to you."

"Coffee's ready!" Snow shouted up.

"I'll see you around at Molly's."

"Ok, bye." Sylvie nodded before closing the door.

Will found Snow at the bottom of the staircase holding a to-go coffee cup. "I hope you like creme brûlée."

"It's my favorite, actually." He said, taking the cup.

"We probably shouldn't tell anybody you stayed here. I'm sure you could make something up on why you left so suddenly. This is so we aren't the topic of gossip at the work place."

Will nodded, following her to the door. "I couldn't agree more, it's better if it's just between us."

In an odd way, it was kind of nice to have a secret. Maybe they could have another secret night in the future.

"Thanks for last night." She wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug, smelling his cologne one final time before they were forced to pretend that they were nothing more than work colleagues. "The other nurses are wrong about you... For now."

"What do they say about me?" He asked, trying not to laugh as he returned the hug. She felt so small in his arms, but it gave him warm fuzzies, which was rather unusual.

"Bree says you're a player and I think Doris has a crush on you. She said something about how she thinks you're cute, but those are both nothing new."

"So you think I'm cute?"

Snow bit her lip and looked down, trying not to laugh for a second before straightening herself up and meeting his gaze. "Yes, I think you're cute. Although, you'd be a lot cuter with a haircut. Whenever I see you lately I feel like I'm looking at a fox."

"Ha, I'll keep it in mind."

"I also hate to run the risk of sounding like Heath Ledger as The Joker in _The Dark Knight_ , but why so serious? Let's put a smile on that face!"

She full on laughed, which seemed to be a bit of a nervous habit. Either way, it gave him a chance to see those uneven dimples once again.

"Dually noted."

Snow stopped laughing, calming herself down. "I'm just saying you have a lovely smile, it's a very nice sight to see, Fry."

"Thanks, as do you, Jem. So I'll see you at work, ok?"

"Ok."

Will started fidgeting but it seemed like he was going to kiss her, so Snow leaned in, only for him to pull back. She pulled back, but leaned in when he did, their lips meeting.

The kiss was the perfect length, not too long but not too short. When they pulled away, she saw Will was actually smiling.

"Have a good one."

"You, too." He waved as he opened the door and walked out, licking the sweetness of her cherry lipgloss on his lips, favoring the flavor.

Snow closed the door behind him, glad that he couldn't see the stupid grin on her face, only for it to disappear into a sad smile.

**_Damnit, I'm falling for this guy..._ **

"Snow, what was Will Halstead doing here?" Sylvie asked as she came down the stairs, something of a laughing smile on her face. "You have to tell me everything."

In a way, this was kind of amusing, and Snow knew that Sylvie could keep her secret about Will.

"Alright, fine." She smiled, walking into the kitchen. "But first, French vanilla or butter toffee?"


	9. Three Queens, Part One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natalie and Connor question Will and Snow, respectively, about the previous day's whereabouts; Snow extends an olive branch to Natalie; After reviving a patient against her wishes, Will takes his frustrations out on Snow and then leaves with Zoe; Snow decides to further pursue things with Connor.

**Hi, everybody! Finally updating! SORRY I took so long, I've been sick and swamped with every day things. Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed: blackvelvetrose, fallingforfiction, FirePDMed, Headwalkerz, ixistargirl89ixi, Lilli89, Ms. Isabella, TheIrishShipperholic and UKgirl71! Be sure to check out their stories, they are quite awesome!**

**I'm behind on _SVU_ and _PD,_ but my social life decided to unexpectedly take off! Hahaha :p I'm hoping to go back to my regular weekly updates by next week! The three queens mentioned are Snow, Natalie and Zoe. They all make up Will's chess game in his pawn of hearts.**

**_Chapter Nine: Three Queens, Part One_ **

As soon as Will walked into Gaffney, Natalie pounced on him, the curiosity tiger emerging.

"Hey, what happened to you yesterday?" She asked, falling into step with him. "You left in such a hurry."

"Oh, uh, my aunt Endora fell and my cousin Peyton wanted me to take a look at her."

He had pondered the whole car ride over on what to say if asked. It wasn't entirely a lie, Aunt Endora was rather clumsy and prone to falling.

Natalie raised an eyebrow. "Aunt Endora? Are you sure you're not making this up?"

"Why would I make anything up?" Will asked, to which she shrugged.

"No reason, it's just that we've known each other how long and this is the first I'm hearing about any family besides your mom and brother."

"I'm a private guy, Nat. That's all there is to it."

"Well, I'm not, which is why I have to tell you what happened with Snow yesterday. She ran out of here crying." Natalie leaned against the locker and laughed as Will put his things away. "She actually spoke to me, and these weren't crocodile tears, either. Her face had makeup all over it and her eyes were red. I felt kind of bad in a way. First she's stuffing her face whenever she thinks nobody's watching and now this?"

"Yeah, I don't want to hear about it." Will slammed the door shut of his locker, starling Natalie as he walked off. He wasn't in the mood to hear gossip, especially since she had no idea what the hell she was talking about. Although, he had meant to ask Snow about the snacking.

Blinking back into reality, she quickly followed him. "What? All I'm saying is that girl obviously has some issues. We don't know anything about her other than she's from that rinky-dink Christmas town in Michigan."

He turned around to face her. "Maybe that's how she wants it. I think she's naturally timid but capable of opening up."

Natalie's reply was a smirk. "You're quite defensive over somebody you can't stand."

"That's not it at all."

"Then what is it? I'd like to know."

Will sighed heavily, knowing that he might as well say something because if he didn't, she wouldn't stop hassling him.

"I don't hate her. She's a little quirky, but she's a sweet girl and a hard worker. Snow is a good kid, she's just very young and not used to the rapid pace of big city living. Let up on her a little, alright? I'm sure she's going through something private that she isn't comfortable sharing yet if not at all."

With that, he walked away. Will was sure Snow had other secrets, like her breast implants for starters, but why was her father teary eyed when she left? Hopefully, last night was the start of her guard coming down...

 

Humming "Runaway Baby" by Bruno Mars to herself, Snow walked into the hospital with a smile on her face. Regardless of all the craziness from yesterday, she was in a seemingly good mood. Her mother had called to say Leaf made it through the night and was doing just fine.

At the same time, her mind was weighing between Connor and Will. Pros and cons, emotions and feelings, the whole nine yards. Maybe she was making too big of a deal out of it though. Last night with Will was probably a one time only deal, but who knows what the future held? Same for Connor, but she'd have to figure out a decision sooner than later.

"Snow, hey."

She looked over to see Connor walking in from the south side of the hospital, a look of concern on his handsome face.

"Hi, Connor. How are you? I'm sorry about yesterday, leaving so abruptly and all."

He shook his head. "No apologies necessary, I understand. Family comes first and it's great that you hold them so dear."

Snow nodded, grateful for his kindness. "That's true, they've stuck by me and I'd stop at nothing to do the same for them."

"How's your brother doing? Any updates?"

"He's good, slept through the night and is glad to stay home from school so he can rot his brain with cartoons, but I think my mom has some schoolwork planned for him somehow."

Connor chuckled, his gorgeous smile shining through. "Ha, I get it. Sounds exactly like Colin. Hey, why don't you let me take you to dinner tonight? You seem like you could use a relaxing evening."

"Oh, wow, that's so nice of you." She stammered out. "Except..."

"Except what?"

"... I don't know about tonight, I'm pretty drained from all of this. Is it ok if I think about it and get back to you later or possibly a rain check?"

He nodded, squeezing her hand. "Yes, that's fine, take as long as you need. I'll see you later."

Snow watched him walk off, mentally kicking herself for not saying yes on the spot. She wanted to, but she should probably avoid both Connor and Will at all costs with the exception of patients, until coming to a conclusion.

"Hey, Snow."

She was almost startled by the voice approaching her as she left the break room. "Hello, Dr. Manning. How are you? Listen, I didn't mean to crash into yesterday, my mind was all jumbled."

Natalie smiled warmly. "It's fine, don't worry about it. I'm alright, but more importantly, are you ok?" She put her hand on the young nurse's shoulder. "You really zoomed out of here in such a hurry."

Snow wasn't sure if this was out of sincerity or cattiness, there was a reason why she referred to Natalie as "Bitch Doctor" instead of "Pregnant Doctor" when telling her parents about work. She really wanted to tell Natalie it wasn't any of her damn business, but that wouldn't be polite.

"Family emergency. My little brother fell out of his treehouse trying to fly."

"Oh, no." Natalie put her hand to her mouth. "That's terrible, I'm awfully sorry. He's alright though?"

Snow nodded. "Yes, thank goodness. Broken arm and a couple stitches, but he's cognitive."

"What a relief, I can only imagine what your mother must have been going through. I'm sure once my child starts running around I'll be a nervous wreck, too."

"Yeah, I can get that."

There was a bit of an awkward silence, which Snow was quick to break.

"Well, I should get going."

Natalie nodded. "Yeah, same here, but it was nice chatting."

As she walked off, Snow went after her.

"Hey, wait up a sec."

"Yes?" Natalie asked as she turned around.

"You know Sylvie Brett, right? She's a paramedic over at 51."

"Mmhmm, I know her. She's you're roommate also, right?"

"Yep, that she is. We're having some people over tomorrow around six for a movie night, I was wondering if you wanted to come? April and Sarah will be there, also."

Yes, she had mixed emotions about Natalie, but perhaps she hadn't given her a chance. Maybe Snow should actually make an attempt to get to know her. She might be pleasantly surprised.

Natalie pursed her lips together and rolled her eyes to the side before nodding with a shrug. "Sure, why not? Just because I'm pregnant doesn't mean I can't indulge in Girl's Night. Is there anything you'd like me to bring?"

"No, just yourself. Unless there's something specific you want? Pregnancy cravings and all."

"Nope, I'm pretty low-maintenance."

"Alright, I'll give you the address before I leave. I'll see you around."

"Ok, bye."

"Bye."

As Natalie walked away, Snow felt a bit relieved, worried she was gonna say no. In this instance, Natalie was the popular cheerleader and Snow was the outcast nerd. Hopefully, they could forge some kind of a friendship.

 

It all happened so fast, but he knew what he was doing. Did he know he was going to get in trouble? Absolutely. In that moment, he thought it was the right thing to do, who knows what good this trial could do for her? Maybe Will should have put another doctor on this case because it hit too close to home, but as a doctor, it was his job to save lives, which is what he had been trying to do.

At the same time, did Natalie have to be such a bitch? If this was what pregnancy was like, he never wanted kids. The glare she shot his way when she left Sharon Goodwin's office literally froze him from her iciness. Then she had the gall to say how he dismisses her, did she think she was Mary Queen of Scots or something? They were equals, which meant an equal amount of respect at the work place should be demonstrated, but Natalie had some major superiority issues. It made liking her so much a huge mistake.

Seeing Zoe and how kind she was with getting his patient on that drug trial made him regret dropping her so quickly, maybe he should give her another chance.

Although, there was another girl that he thought was very sweet and that he was thinking about for most of the day. Lucky for him, she had her cellphone on her to receive his text.

"Hey."

Will turned around to see Snow walking towards him.

"Hey."

"Wow, it's beautiful out here."

Snow joined Will at the railing on the roof. It was night time, twilight to be exact. The pinks and yellows of the sunset were being pushed away by the darkness of blues and purples, with the stars joining in, flaunting their brightness.

"Yeah, it is." He agreed, but he only has eyes for her. "It reminds me of your room."

She looked away with a blush before straightening up. "I'm glad you liked it." Snow put her hand on his back. "I heard about what happened, are you alright?"

Will shook his head, looking out at the city. "No, and I don't know when I will be. The family is suing the hospital and holding me responsible."

Snow put her hand over her mouth. "Oh, my gosh. Will, I'm so sorry."

She had seen Jennifer Baker, the cancer patient who had wished not to be resuscitated, but Will went against it and revived her, which had Natalie infuriated. It was a black and white area, honestly. Natalie did what was necessary in a medical and professional sense, Will thought he was doing the right thing by giving Jennifer Baker a second chance. Life was precious, but sometimes the pain is stronger than the will to survive.

"The whole time I was thinking of my mom, what if her life had been in my hands like Jennifer's and I could have saved her? I didn't want to second guess it again."

Will would have done virtually anything to have brought his mother back, but he couldn't, which is why he did just that with Jennifer Baker, so her young daughter wouldn't have to grow up without a mother.

"I understand, and I'm sure you'll be able to voice that to Ms. Goodwin at some point. You seem like you could use a hug."

Without waiting for an answer, Snow wrapped her arms around him, listening to Will's heartbeat, with his arms slowly following in the embrace. The look on his face broke her heart. His new nickname at this point was "Big Eyes", because every time she saw Will when he was upset, all she could think about were those paintings.

"Thank you." He whispered in her ear, stroking her hair. She was such a caring and selfless person with a huge heart, and that was hard to find nowadays.

She nodded. "Of course. I don't mean to sound like a walking cliché, but I'll always be-"

Snow was cut off when Will grabbed her face and kissed her. It took her a bit by surprise, but they had kissed twice yesterday and again this morning, so she kissed him back. Was this their thing now? Were they friends with benefits?

Will wrapped her legs around his waist and turned them around so Snow was against the railing as he kissed her neck. She looked over her shoulder, seeing how high up they were and wrapped her arms tightly around his neck.

"Uh, Will, we're against the railing. I don't think this is safe."

"Don't worry, sweetheart." He stopped nibbling at her neck, their eyes locking. "I've got you and I'm not letting go. I won't let you fall, I promise."

The words rang true in his gaze. At that moment in his muscular arms, she trusted him more than anybody in the world.

She nodded. "Alright. I appreciate that."

"Of course."

Will kissed her again as his hands roamed all over her body. She was feeling a little self conscious, knowing that she looked nothing like the supermodels he was used to dating, especially when he started fondling her breasts.

"Wait, I don't think we should do this. I'm kind of un-"

"Relax." He put one hand on her cheek and pressed their foreheads together. "I'm going to make you feel amazing, I promise."

"I'm sure you can, but the fact of the matter is we're on the roof and- AHHHH!"

Snow let out a gasp the moment his fingers entered her, surprise and arousal taking over.

He smiled at how wet she was. "Mmm, I knew you liked me, Snow. There's no denying it now."

Will moved his fingers inside her at a rhythmic pace, watching her eyes fluttering and moans come out of her mouth. He had this young girl in a vulnerable spot, which he couldn't help but find quite sexy. This was Snow at her truest, with no façade to keep her safe.

Snow knew how risky this was, but she was too enraptured in pleasure to stop him. A part of her was ashamed for being so turned on, except she was enjoying herself too much to stop this. Will had been on her mind for weeks, and this brought about a surprising comfort within her.

"Mmm, Will... Your hands feel so good on me..."

They continued making out as his fingers danced, his thumb joining in by rubbing her clit, which slowly sent Snow over the edge of erotica's peak, a loud moan flying into his mouth. There was nothing that made Will happier than the sight of a woman coming. Ever since he was twelve years old and discovered the joys of sex, he had made it his life's mission to be the ultimate master of orgasms. Plus, if Snow was this tight from just his fingers, he could only imagine how his entire length would feel...

"Oh, my gosh!"

The lights of the city exploded behind her eyes as she came, the Chicago air kissed her flushed face. Snow held onto Will with all her strength, still too petrified to look down, passionately kissing. This wasn't her first time, but something about this time felt different. It felt... mature, and she couldn't help but want more.

Will set her against the wall across from the railing. Snow slinked down to the ground, all feeling in her legs was gone, and opened her eyes to see him slowly licking his fingers.

"Wow..."

"What?" She asked, slowly blinking her eyes, the world still slightly spinning.

"You taste incredible."

Snow blushed, stammering. "Oh, th-thanks."

He had that cocky Halstead smirk on his face. "Keep being my good girl now, ok, Jem?" Will winked, leaning down and kissing her before walking away.

Snow sat there for a good five minutes after he left, letting the events that just transpired sink in. What was that? Did he just think of her as some doll he could play with whenever his heart desires, whenever he was having a bad day, and then just abandon her when he was done?

The racing thoughts infuriated her, she felt totally demeaned and almost taken advantage of.

**_I have to get to the bottom of this, NOW!_ **

Snow pushed herself off the ground and made her way back inside, on the war path. Who the hell did he think he was pulling that?! That shit was not going to fly and she was going to give that sexy yet irritating ginger a piece of her mind.

Except for when Snow finally caught him, she was unable to get the words out. Her heart dropped a hundred stories when she saw him leave with Zoe after over hearing the blonde pharmaceutical rep offer to buy him a drink. This was the kind of guy Will was and he wasn't going to change. He is the true definition of a player and she was wasting her time.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Connor. He looked over and smiled at her, prompting Snow to take a leap of faith.

"Hey Snow, how's everything-"

He was cut off when she dragged him to the break room and heatedly pressed her lips to his. The answer was in front of her all along, but she had let her mind play tricks and second guess things. When she pulled away, Connor had a confused smile on his face.

"Whoa, what was that for? Not that I'm complaining."

Snow looked at him, half apprehensive and half confident. "Yes, I'll go to dinner with you tonight. Whatever it is that we're doing, can we just take it slow? No labels, just have fun with each other?"

Connor nodded. "Of course. I'm just enjoying the pleasure of your company and getting to know each other better."

She hugged him, feeling secure and happy. Snow would have been crazy to give up Connor for an unstable guy like Will. Well, that second guessing was never going to happen again.


	10. King of Hearts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will is brought up at Movie Night, where Natalie expresses her confidence for his crush never wavering, disappointing Snow; Snow's parents and brother pop in for a visit with Dr. Charles, who introduces Snow to the ultra cool Dr. Downey; Leaf is excited to see Will and gives him his treasured Baymax keychain; Maggie tells Will he better decide between Snow and Natalie.

**Hi, everybody! Finally updating! SORRY I took so long, I've been sick and swamped with every day things. Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed: fallingforfiction, ixistargirl89ixi, Lilli89, Ms. Isabella, TheIrishShipperholic and UKgirl71! Be sure to check out their stories, they are quite awesome! Btw the Rhodestead fight was sexy! Hot damn, boys!**

**I'm stoked to finally bring in Dr. Downey, and soon enough we'll be finding out what Snow's big secret is! Enjoy!**

**_Chapter Ten: King of Hearts_ **

"Wow, that movie was actually a lot better than the first one." Sarah said as the credits of _Magic Mike XXL_ began rolling, to which April nodded.

"Hey, as long as Channing Tatum has his shirt off, it's all good with me."

"What about Joe Magianello? Those abs, they could stop traffic." Chili said as she playfully fanned herself, making all the girls laugh.

"Well," Natalie shrugged. "I'd say that this and _Fifty Shades_ were more along the lines of movies, not films."

Snow nodded, pointing over at Natalie. "Yes, I had the exact same thought. They don't hold a candle to _The Theory of Everything_ or _Blue Jasmine_. Award season is coming up, which means new films."

Natalie smiled at her. "Yeah, right? I've been dying to see _Joy_ since I saw the trailer, I just adore Jennifer Lawrence more than life itself."

So far, the evening had been going pretty well. All the ladies were getting along, and while Snow was enjoying herself, her mind was cluttered. Throughout both movies, she couldn't stop thinking of Will. Yes, she had decided she could no longer waste time on that disappointment, but why was his stupid sexy face invading her thoughts? Christian Grey's smooth talking dominance and Magic Mike's charming seduction made Snow think of how Will was with her when they were alone.

Sylvie nudged her roommate. "You've been awfully quiet, Snow. Everything ok?"

"Huh?" Snow shook her head, exiting the land of day dreams.

"Probably thinking about Connor Rhodes, Hunk, M.D." Maggie suggested with a wink. "What's going on with you two?" She asked, sipping some moscato.

Snow gritted her teeth and shifted a bit nervously, hoping that it wouldn't be brought up but knowing it was inevitable. "Um, nothing? We're just friends."

"Like Will and Natalie." Kim added.

Snow hoped that the deflection worked, but all Natalie did was laugh to herself.

"Maybe not for much longer. I'm only a few weeks away from my due date."

"What does that mean?"

Snow hadn't realized that she said that a little louder than she should have until everybody was staring at her. She cleared her throat, knowing she desperately had to back track.

"Uh, I mean what do you mean by that? He's been pretty cozy with Zoe."

Luckily, Nat was unfazed. "I don't have anything to worry about. I know that Will isn't going anywhere, that he'll always want me. This thing with Zoe is just to pass the time until I'm available, and he'll forgive me eventually for turning him in to Ms. Goodwin." She took another bite of the cake Snow made. "Mmm! What the French? Oh, my gosh. Snow, this cake is amazing! What's it called?"

"Better than sex cake." Snow replied quietly, wanting to scream. She knew she didn't have that hold on Will like Natalie did, which had Snow rattled. Why was she still feeling like this? She was a grown adult who had made her decision and needed to stick with it.

"Would you mind getting me another piece? It's just too good."

"Sure." She got up and grabbed Natalie's plate, walking to the kitchen.

"Hey," Sylvie walked in behind her. "are you alright?"

Snow sighed heavily, cutting off a slice of cake for Natalie. A part of her was tempted to spit in it, but that was immature and she was better than that.

"Yeah, I'm alright. I've got a lot on my mind." Her stress wanting to hit the roof, she cut off an even bigger slice for herself and dug in.

"Would it have anything to do with what Natalie said about Will? I noticed you tensed up a little when he was mentioned."

"A little bit. I mean, I just don't get it. I've decided to move forward with Connor, but it's like I can't jump in one hundred percent and Will is still on my mind. What's wrong with me?"

Sylvie looked at her friend with sad eyes. "I don't blame you, you're conflicted, Snow. One minute he's an arrogant asshole and the next minute he's all over you. Honestly, I think he likes you. Why else would he follow you to Michigan?"

"That's the one question I've yet to answer, just like I've never been able to fully answer why I kissed him on the roof that day. What scares me is that I don't know if either one of those will be answered." Snow put her elbows on the counter and her head in her hands, running her fingers through her hair. This was all turning itself into a game, everything with Connor was laid out in neat stacks, even his secrets, but Will's confusion and indecisiveness was oddly alluring... It made Snow wonder if she was further over the cliff than she thought.

**_A WEEK AND A HALF LATER_ **

"Hey, Snow. Guess what?"

Connor raced up to her as she was leaving a room after having treated a patient with Dr. Choi.

"What?"

"I finished _Better Call Saul_."

"Really? Awesome! What did you think?"

He shrugged. "Well, it was good, but I'm a bit confused on some things." Connor rested his hand on the wall and leaned into her. "I was kind of hoping you could explain them. You still haven't been to my place yet."

Snow could feel her cheeks burning, looking in every direction except his eyes. She had thought about what it would be like to take that next step with Connor, but decided she may have needed more time.

"Well, I-"

Her gaze diverted from his gorgeous eyes to a group of adults emerging into the hallway by the front desk. One was Dr. Charles, but the other two she couldn't believe...

"Mom? Dad?"

Her parents turned around and looked over, which was when she saw her favorite little person.

"Leaflet!"

Snow was a little louder than she should have been, it was quite a surprise, but she contained herself from racing to them.

"Snow!"

Leaf met her halfway and jumped in her arms, not caring about his injury.

"What are you doing here, buddy?" Snow looked over at her parents. "Hi, Mom and Dad."

"Hi, sweetheart." Maia said with a smile as Vince motioned his only daughter over.

"Hey, Rocky."

"Ah, Snow. So good to see you." Dr. Charles said with a smile.

"Likewise."

"Hello, Dr. Charles, Dr. Downey." Connor nodded his head at both of them as he walked up.

"Dr. Rhodes."

Snow almost face palmed herself. "Crap! I'm so sorry, how rude of me. Mom, Dad, this is Dr. Connor Rhodes" She turned to Connor. "These are my parents and my little brother."

"Ah, the famous Leaf. It's nice to meet you all." Connor said with a smile, shaking hands with her parents, but Leaf suddenly tensed up and rested his head on Snow's shoulder, hiding his face.

"Leaf, what's wrong? Come on, say hello."

Snow was baffled, Leaf was always a bumbling joy, never shy at all.

Connor shrugged. "It's alright, all the excitement since the flying incident probably wore him out."

Dr. Charles cleared his throat. "Snow, there's somebody your parents and I want you to meet." He gestured to the blonde man with glasses standing next to him, whom Snow immediately recognized.

"Hi, Dr. Downey." She smiled, balancing her little brother on her hip and extending her hand out. "I've been meaning to introduce myself, but it's been crazy."

Dr. Downey nodded and shook her hand. "It's alright, life isn't life without a touch of chaos. I understand we've had similar experience with illness before? Looks like we're on the same page, nothing to perk things up like some color, huh, Rainbow Brite?"

Snow laughed and nodded. "Absolutely." She had heard nothing but great things about Dr. Downey, especially from Connor, his protege.

She felt Connor's eyes going back and forth between her and Dr. Downey, knowing he wanted to know what exactly they are talking about.

"Come by my office some time and we'll share our war stories when you're feeling up to it."

She nodded again, uncomfortableness emerging. "You got it."

"It was great to see you again, Dr. Charles, and nice meeting you as well, Dr. Downey." Vince shook both their hands as the doctors bid good bye.

"So, how long are you in town for?" Connor's arm instinctively wrapped around Snow. While she did enjoy it, she felt a bit out of place, almost squeamish.

"Just for today to meet with Dr. Downey and then going to see my brother. We actually swung by to surprise our Snowflake and take her to lunch. Can you spare an hour, cutie pie?" Vince asked.

"Why don't you come with us, Connor?" Maia invited.

Snow's smile disappeared, wanting to interject, but before Connor could reply his pager went off.

"Sorry, I would have loved to, but duty calls. It was nice meeting you all. Bye, Leaf."

"Bye." Leaf gave a small wave

"Take care." Said Vince.

"I'll see you around, Snow." He gave her a kiss on the head before walking away, leaving Snow rosy cheeked in front of her family.

"My, Handsome Doctor sure does live up to his name." Maia said with a wink. "Why didn't you want him to come with us? You were about to say something right before his pager went off."

All Snow did was shrug. "He has things to do, we shouldn't take away valuable time. Come on, let me introduce you to everybody."

She turned around and power walked over to where Maggie was sitting. Her parents obviously thought there was more, she didn't really feel like telling them she didn't want Connor coming because he wasn't exactly her boyfriend, it wouldn't be right to jump into something when her brain was in a fog.

"Maggie, look who surprised me with a visit!" Snow smiled, setting Leaf down on the desk. "My parents and younger brother."

"How're you doing, sweetie?" Maggie asked Leaf, reaching into her goodie cup. "Here's a lollipop, sugar."

"Thanks!" Leaf's face lit up as he unwrapped the cherry lollipop.

"He's a cutie, just like his big sister."

Maia smiled. "Thank you very much."

"I see where Snow looks like you, but I'd be lying if I said that she wasn't a dead ringer for her father."

Snow and Vince laughed as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her in. "We get that more often than you think." She looked up at her father in pride. Snow knew she was lucky to have attractive and kind parents, she hoped she would be as good of a parent one day. They loved her and Leaf unconditionally, even though she had nearly put them through hell...

Will walked up to the front desk to drop a file off when he saw Maggie interacting with Snow and her family. It had been a week since they had even spoken, Snow was avoiding him for some reason he couldn't figure out, but now was not the time for it to be unveiled.

**_Maybe if I walk away really quietly, I'll go unnoticed._ **

He successfully put the file on the counter and was about to walk away when Leaf looked over and saw him.

"Gingy Doctor!"

Leaf hopped off the desk, nearly tripping himself to jump up on Will.

"Hey there, little man. How are you?" Will felt his arms nearly trembling, he was so inexperienced with being around small children. Luckily, Leaf was light.

"Good, my arm is so much better. I haven't done anymore flying."

"Well, that's good. You'll be back to riding your bike in no time."

"Oh, hi, Will." If Snow was blushing before, her face was really heated now. With the exception of small talk, she had done her best in avoiding Will and now she was backed in a corner.

"Hey, Snow. Hi, Dr. and Mrs. Greyson. What brings you to the Windy City?" Will asked, walking over and setting Leaf down.

"Hi, Will. We're just here to take care of some business and figured we'd surprise Snow." Maia said.

"That's really thoughtful of you. I'm glad to see Leaf is recovering smoothly."

Leaf tugged on his doctor's coat. "Will! Will!"

"Leaf, come on. Don't bother Will." Snow said, only to be surprised when Leaf pulled something out of his pocket.

Will shook his head. "He's not a bother at all. Oh, what's this?" He looked down at the keychain figurine Leaf put it in his hand, a little white blob with black slits for eyes and a black line for his mouth.

"Baymax, he's from _Big Hero 6_ and the coolest next to Batman!" Leaf had a slight whistle when he talked, probably from losing his front tooth.

"That's tough to beat, Batman is pretty cool."

"Leaf, are you sure about this?" Snow asked, to which he nodded.

"Because he looked me over at the hospital and friends give each other presents. We're friends, right, Will?"

"Of course we are." Will smiled at the small boy, stroking the head of the figurine with his thumb.

Snow was once again gobsmacked. How could he be so nonchalant with her family when just a week ago his hand was down the front of her pants bringing her to nirvana? It was so easy for him to communicate with Leaf, but not with her. He knew what he was doing and it was making her head spin.

"We should probably get going, I don't have a lot of time for lunch, you guys. I'll see you later, Will. Bye, Maggie." Snow scooped Leaf up in her arms.

"It was nice seeing you all again. Take care, buddy." Will ruffled Leaf's hair.

"Have a good one." Vince waved before they all walked out, Maggie and Will watching them.

"Boy, I don't know what's going on with you, but it's about time you make a decision."

Will gave Maggie a quizzical look. "Huh? What do you mean?"

Maggie rolled her eyes at him. "Don't play dumb with me, Will. Everybody around here knows you like Natalie and Snow."

He hesitated for a bit before replying. "They do?"

She nodded. "Yes, they do."

 _Busted_. Will thought to himself. "Natalie's been a widow for less than a year, and I'm not trying to be anybody's rebound or replacement."

"Then go for Snow. If you don't make up your mind, Connor is going to move in and sweep that pretty girl off her feet."

"I know, Maggie, I know. Snow is a bit secretive and I just can't put my finger on it."

He knew there was something she was hiding, but he was worried their little rooftop rendezvous had pushed her away instead of bringing them closer. Snow had been avoiding him ever since then. Was it worth it to get to the bottom of things?


	11. Three Queens, Part Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snow confides in her family about her conflicted feelings for Will and Connor, only for a surprise kiss to shatter her soul; Fed up, Snow confronts Will, who then acts on impulse, with the two of them deciding to see where things could take them.

**Hi, everybody! Finally updating! SORRY I took so long, family crisis once again but I'm trying to tough it out. Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed: fallingforfiction, ixistargirl89ixi, Lilli89, M39151, Ms. Isabella, TheIrishShipperholic and UKgirl71! Be sure to check out their stories, they are quite awesome! Especially my new story with TheIrishShipperholic, "Giving You My Heart"!**

**_Chapter Eleven: Three Queens, Part Two_ **

"Snow, did you hear what I said?"

"Huh?" Snow looked up from her salmon, which she was more pushing around her plate than eating. "I'm sorry, what did you say, Mom?"

Maia and Vince had taken their children to one of the nicest restaurants in town, which wasn't too crowded for a weekday.

"I said that it's a shame Sylvie couldn't join us for lunch, we're dying to meet her in person."

"Oh. Well, one of these days, I promise."

"Are you alright? You've been awfully quiet."

Snow nodded. "I'm fine."

"You've barely touched your food." Vince gestured at her plate, to which she shrugged.

"I just have a lot on my mind is all. Work stuff."

"What, like your boyfriend Gingy Doctor?" Leaf started laughing, to which Snow rolled her eyes.

"Zip it, kiddo! He is not my boyfriend!"

"You like like him, I can tell. Your face looked like a strawberry when we saw him at the hospital."

"Well, he's not my boyfriend, and neither is Connor."

"He's not...?" Vince raised an eyebrow, which was psych talk for "tell me more".

"We're dating without labels, and he's perfect, so why can't I dive in one hundred percent?" Snow put her head in her hands before remembering it was improper to have elbows on the table. "Will drives me insane! He's cocky, arrogant, a downright misogynistic womanizer, not to mention a redhead. Every time I see him I keep hearing Heart songs in my head. Yet... Will Halstead is all I think about. His smile has invaded my mind, but he's so confusing I can't tell whether or not he likes me. Here I am, a total catch wants me but a total moron has my attention... I must be crazy."

"No, you're not, sweetheart. You're just conflicted is all." Vince put his hand on hers.

"I agree with your father. Although this advice is tired, it's also true: Listen and follow your heart. Maybe sometimes it's the least likely person that's the most likely fit for us."

Vince nodded. "At the end of the day, it's what you want, and nobody should get mad at you for that. Whatever you decide to do, the three of us are behind you one hundred percent."

Snow smiled, feeling so thankful for having such a supportive family. "Thanks, guys. It really means a lot."

"It doesn't matter, she's going to end up with Gingy Doctor anyway."

Leaf started making kissing noises, to which Snow shoved his shoulder but couldn't help laughing before taking a delicious bite of her perfectly grilled and blackened salmon.

 

After bidding her parents good bye, Snow walked back into the hospital with the ease she had needed for some time now. It had been a huge relief being able to vocalize her feelings about Will, but now it was about time she tell him to his face and maybe this could be sorted out somehow. He had to have liked her back, right?

Lucky for her, Will happened to be in the break room, but what she didn't realize was that he was talking to a certain "friendly" doctor. Curiosity got the better of her, so she snuck around to the side door, which was open slightly and she couldn't be so easily spotted.

Natalie was whining about how Will was an emotional revolving door, letting her in only to shut her out again, which made Snow want to roll her eyes.

"Don't you know?" Will asked, to which Natalie shook her head.

"No."

Snow watched with wide eyes, feeling the color drain from her face as Will leaned in and kissed Natalie on the mouth. She wanted to scream "NO! WHY?!", having a burning desire to let the shouting voices in her head to be said aloud. Bile bubbled up in her throat and her heart stopped, the world in this moment crashing down.

When Will finally pulled away, Natalie was speechless, watching him walkout the door. Snow didn't look long enough to see her reaction, instead pinching her arm to prevent her tears. Will had obviously made his decision, and she needed to accept it.

* * *

 

Will saw Snow entering the break room and was glad that she was the only one in there, he was anxious to get her alone. Rushing forward from across the first floor, he opened the door.

"Jem!"

Snow gasped, startled as she looked over at him from her locker. "Oh! Will, you startled me."

He smiled at how shocked she was. "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," Will closed the door and walked over to her. "but you've had me worried."

"Worried about what?"

"About you." He wrapped his arms around her from behind, resting his chin on her shoulder. "We haven't spoken much since the roof, I thought we had fun? You've been on my mind lately."

Snow was glad that he couldn't see her face, because her jaw just about hit the floor. Was Will Halstead lost of his marbles? How the hell could she have been on his mind when he just kissed Natalie not even two hours ago. It's official, he was a player to the T.

"What I do isn't any of your concern." Snow threw his arms off of her, turning around to face him. "Look, your lines aren't going to work. Sleep with every chick in Chicago, I don't care, just stay away from me."

"What's your problem? I thought we were cool."

"You were sadly mistaken." She slammed her locker door shut, nearly startling him, before giving him a side glance. "Oh, and I want my brother's Baymax back."

"What?" He asked, confused.

"The figurine he gave you this afternoon. I want it back, some jackass like you doesn't deserve it. He's an innocent little boy that doesn't know any better about who he's giving his toys to."

"Don't get your panties in a twist, I'll give it back. Then you can give it to Connor, your Mr. Perfect."

That was the wrong thing to say, her face in a deeper scowl. "Don't get my panties in a twist?! How dare you say that to me after-"

"Keep your voice down." He grumbled at her.

"How dare you say that after what you did to me on the roof?!" She hissed through gritted teeth, not even allowing herself to further bring Connor into the conversation.

Will sarcastically laughed. "Ha, you're one to talk, sweetheart. You tried to jerk me off in my sleep!"

Snow's grimace disappeared, morphing into confusion. "What?"

"If I were you, I'd talk to Dr. Charles about your sexsomnia and binge eating. Don't think that last one has gone unnoticed, the entire staff is talking about it."

Will couldn't believe what had just come out of his mouth, and would have done anything to take it back.

In that moment, Snow wanted to cry, but she was stronger than this and swallowed her pain away. "Whatever, you think I'm so thin skinned with what people say about me? I've been through much worse so you don't know anything. You stopped me that night but you did nothing to stop yourself!"

"Ha, I didn't see you trying to stop me, either."

"I have every right to be annoyed with you, you're such a tease! One week you're following me across state lines and trying to sleep with me, the next week you act like I'm invisible-"

Will cut her off. "I do not-"

"And kiss another chick right in front of me! Not just any chick, but Bitch Doctor at that!" Snow raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms, he seemed to be in shock.

"You saw that?" Will asked nervously, to which she nodded.

"Yep, and I wish I hadn't. I mean... URGH!" She groaned in frustration. "You are so complicated, Will! Why do I have to like you so much?! Why do you have to like Natalie? WHAT is there to like about her besides the fact that she's a good doctor? She's got, like, zero personality, and she comes off as stuck up. If it's not her or me, it's Zoe, who is kind of out of your league if you ask me."

Snow hadn't meant to say so much, but it slipped out. While a part of her knew she should have kept her mouth shut, she was glad she hadn't.

"I like you all." He whispered, looking down at his sneakers.

That only made Snow more aggravated. "This isn't Utah, you can't have all of us! You need to make a decision."

Will looked up from the floor, flames in his eyes. He was annoyed at everything, the stubborn ass within him hated being called out. His mouth worked faster than his brain, but considering the situation, it was time to come clean.

"You're a parasite, Snow. You're young, so you think you know it all and you rarely listen. Even though you're kind of shy, you're opinionated. Basically, you are the biggest pain in my ass. At the same time, you must be blind if you can't see it."

"Can't see what?"

"That I think you're fucking adorable and I can't stop thinking about you, no matter how hard I try. I followed you to Bridgeport because I was worried something horrific happened and I didn't want you to be alone. I do like you, Snow. Maybe too much. You're cute and sexy and I just-"

Will cut himself off by grabbing Snow's face and kissing her. She didn't push him away, letting the kiss win, pulling him closer to her. This kiss was powerful and full of elongated frustration. When they pulled away, Snow actually had to blink a couple times, the music in her head louder than ever, being "Vulnerable" by Secondhand Serenade. She couldn't help but smile, loving the craziness and spontaneity.

"What's so funny?" Will asked.

"You realize you just made me and Natalie Eskimo sisters, right? Zoe, too."

He cracked a smile. "Uh-oh, I guess you're right."

"So what are we going to do now?"

"Well," Will grabbed both of her hands in his. "I think maybe you and I should spend more time together, get to know each other better before figuring out if we're up to taking things to the next level."

She nodded, squeezing his hands. "That sounds great, I'm all for it. Why don't you call me after work and we'll figure it out?"

"Ok."

With that, their moment was cut short by the sirens ringing.

"It's time to go." Snow said, straightening up.

"Yeah. Hey, I meant to ask you, how are you so in love with a series where one of the antagonists has your name?"

Snow smiled, following him out of the break room and knowing what he was talking about. "You mean _The Hunger Games_?"

Will nodded, turning around with a smile. "Yeah, I do. I've been reading the books since you wore Katniss' braid, I wanted to get caught up on the trilogy and ask you out to see the last movie."

"That's pretty awesome, I'm impressed."

"So would you like to go to the midnight showing next month?"

"I'm so there!" She beamed, making him chuckle.

Both of them had a sense of relief, having gotten their feelings out in the open, but what they didn't know was that their private moment hadn't been as private as they thought...


	12. Wonder If I...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natalie tries to approach Will at Molly's Halloween party about the kiss; Connor politely tells Snow that he's aware she's caught up in the middle and to make her own decision on what she wants; Will and Snow grow closer over a movie marathon of The Hunger Games, with things getting quite heated until Jay arrives; Jay's encouragement of Snow makes Will begin to question things.

**Hi, everybody! Finally updating! SORRY I took so long, family crisis once again but I'm trying to tough it out. Also sorry for reposting this, I left out some important things! It was interesting to write this chapter lol. Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed: M39151, Ms. Isabella, and TheIrishShipperholic! Be sure to check out their stories, they are quite awesome! Especially my new story with TheIrishShipperholic, "Giving You My Heart"!**

**If you haven't already, you should absolutely check out _Children's Hospital_ or look up on YouTube "Do You Want To See a Dead Body with Rob Huebel and Rob Riggle", they're both freaking hilarious!**

**R.I.P. PRINCE!**

**_Chapter Twelve: Wonder If I..._ **

Saturday night at Molly's was usually a jumping joint, but tonight was especially hot, for it was Halloween. Orange and black lights, cut outs of ghosts and vampires, and plastic pumpkins filled with candy switched up the decor for the evening, the beer and wine flowing, inhibitions let down.

Will leaned against the bar, dressed in jeans, black sneakers, a white T shirt and a red jacket. Everybody was dressed up in pretty outlandish costumes, but he decided to keep it simple.

"Will."

He glanced over his shoulder to see Natalie dressed as a nun.

"Oh, hey, Nat. How are you?"

"I'm alright, how are you?"

"Never better." He took a swig of his beer, hoping that at any moment Snow would walk through the door, he couldn't wait to see what her costume was. Actually, Will was dying to see her.

"Never better? Will, we're going to have to talk about that kiss at some point, things have been getting a bit awkward at work."

This was something Will was very well aware of, still undecided if he regretted it or not.

"What about it, Natalie? It was impulsive, maybe we should write it off and not discuss it."

"There you go again, being an emotional revolving door." Natalie heavily sighed and scrunched up her face when she glanced at the front entrance. "Wait a second, who is that ridiculous girl with Sylvie? No, it can't be. Is that-"

Will turned around and couldn't believe who was walking with Sylvie. Snow was unusually pale, with pink lips, dark eyes, a wavy white blonde wig almost to her shoulders, wearing black stilettos and a strapless dress made entirely out of yellow Caution tape while Sylvie's was a black garbage bag dress. "Problem" by Natalia Kills was playing and the lyrics rang true for Natalie. That girl _was_ a problem...

"Whoa, dangerous curves ahead!" Herrmann said with a laughing smile as Snow approached the bar.

"Ha, thanks, Dracula." She nodded over at his costume.

"That's Count Chocula. Give the boys a twirl, will ya?"

"You got it."

Snow did a step and twirl, finishing with her hands on her hips, her dimples popping out. She looked over at Will, still flashing her smile.

"Fry! I'm liking it."

"Th-th-thanks. You're the first person not to say James Dean."

Will could not take his eyes off of this girl, not knowing this side of her but it was absolutely being pulled off, which is what he'd like to do with that dress... rip it off, to be precise... with his teeth.

"Hey, Nat. How are you?" Snow leaned over, giving her a polite hug.

"Wow, Snow, you're really putting yourself out there. Trying to break out of your shell?"

"Nah, just living life like Kimmy Schmidt." Snow laughed before pointing at Will with her thumb. "It's this one that needs to throw _Grey's Anatomy_ in the trash can. I like your _Flying Nun_ costume."

"It's just a regular nun."

"Gotcha."

"Snow, you must be freezing." Will said, to which she shook her head.

"Nah, I'm fine. Molly's is always toasty warm."

"Here, take my jacket." He took off his red jacket and put it over her shoulders. "You're getting lecherous looks from some of the guys. Actually, the colors really mesh together."

She smiled at him, secretly loving the courteousness she waited for him to demonstrate.

"Well, thank you very much." Snow caressed the sleeve of the jacket.

Natalie couldn't help but feel crushed watching this. With the exception of that one time in the parking lot when he helped her with her purse, Will had never done anything like that for her. Maybe she was wrong and didn't have as strong of a hold on him as she originally thought.

"Hey, guys."

The trio diverted their attention to Connor, who was dressed as a pirate.

"Hi, Connor." Natalie said.

"Wow, you're certainly giving Capitan Jack Sparrow a run for his money." Snow gave him a hug. She knew that eventually she'd have to tell Connor about her and Will, but tonight wasn't the time. They both deserved some fun.

"Mind if I steal Snow away for a second?"

Natalie shook her head before Will could even reply. "Not at all."

"I'm sure I'll see you around later." Snow shrugged off Will's jacket and handed it back.

Will watched them walking away before turning back to Natalie. "Anyways, what were you saying?"

Natalie shook her head again, looking the other way. "Nothing, nothing at all."

 

"Is everything alright, Connor?" Snow asked as Connor led her to a corner of the bar.

"Yes, it is, but I wanted to get you alone for a reason."

"Actually, I wanted to talk to you, also. I was hoping it could be somewhere more private, but this will do. Is everything alright?"

Connor rubbed the back of his neck, seeming a little on edge. "Not really. Snow, you're something else. You're beautiful, smart and have the biggest heart of anybody at Chicago Med. I've really enjoyed spending time with you, in and out of work."

She nodded. "Thanks, and you know I think very highly of you as well."

"I do, I also think that maybe you're trying to throw yourself into something when you're being pulled in another direction."

"Excuse me?" She blinked in confusion, her heart nearly stopping.

"You're young, your head and your heart are all over the place. I do like you a lot, but you need to make your own decisions on what you want. It just seems like maybe your feelings lie stronger with somebody else. Whomever you pick, it's on you, kiddo."

Connor leaned in, giving her a kiss on the cheek before walking away. Snow turned around, her hand to her cheek as she watched him leave. A part of her felt genuinely crushed, but maybe this is what needed to happen. He obviously had caught on about her and Will, and it wasn't fair to string him along when she was so conflicted, even though she had tried to make a decision and stick with it. Maybe this was the shove she needed...

 

"Oh, my gosh! Poor Peeta!" Snow's hands flew to her mouth as Peeta Mellark struggled to break free of his restraints while Katniss Everdeen helplessly watched, ending _Mockingjay: Part One_. Will looked over at her, thinking how cute it was that she was so invested with the movie, but he laughed instead.

"Oh no, poor Peeta!"

She raised an eyebrow at him. "Are you making fun of me?"

"Maybe a little bit."

They were currently at Will and Jay's place, watching _The Hunger Games_ movies, just finishing the last one, and having hot fudge birthday cake ice cream brownie sundaes. It was very relaxing and secluded, Will and Snow were really able to let their hair down and get comfortable with each other. This included getting cozy on the couch, but it had yet to progress past that and a welcoming hug when she arrived, even though they both wanted it to.

"Come on, it's kind of sad. She loves him and she can't help him. Besides, Josh Hutcherson is so cute!"

"Oh, jeez." He rolled his eyes. "So you've got a thing for blondes now?"

"So do you! F.Y.I., he's actually a brunette, and the actor that played Finnick Odair is adorable, but lately I've been seeing red."

"Yeah, about that," Will wrapped his arm around Snow's shoulders. "I've been meaning to ask how you came up with all the nicknames for the staff."

Snow shrugged, snuggling into his touch, leaning back against his chest. "What's to say? It's pretty self explanatory. Connor is Handsome Doctor-"

"That's a given." Will wrapped his arms around her stomach, the scent of her shampoo clouding his mind. He didn't want to scare her off by telling Snow that he loved having her in his arms, but he had a feeling that even if the beans were spilled that she wouldn't judge.

Snow was tempted to roll her eyes at him, but kept talking. "Anyways... Like I said, self explanatory. Maggie is Sassy Nurse, April is Pretty Nurse, Sarah is Nervous Med Student, Joey is Nerdy Lab Tech, Ethan is Chinese Doctor, Dr. Charles is Salt and Pepper Psychiatrist, Dr. Downey is Big Kahuna, Natalie is Bitch Doctor-"

"She's not so bad once you get to know her."

**_Although, not going to lie, that nickname kind of fits her perfectly._ **

"That's yet to be seen, she doesn't seem sincere, but that's just me. Although the same was said to me about you, once." Snow looked up at Will and smiled. "So she's Bitch Doctor and lastly, you're Gingy Doctor, but you're not the first Gingy Doctor."

He raised an eyebrow. "I'm not? Really?"

"Nope. Dr. Owen Maestro on _Children's Hospital_. That show is so hilarious I laugh myself to tears."

"I'll have to check that out sometime."

"Rob Huebel plays him, his voice is so sexy, like yours. Call me crazy, but your voice sounds exactly like David Duchovny."

"Funny enough, you wouldn't be the first person to say that. So we've got Josh Hutcherson, Sam Claflin, and Rob Huebel." He shrugged. "I guess it's nice to know who my competition is."

"What, like you don't think Katniss is hot? Jennifer Lawrence is a natural blonde. Again, I know you like those."

Will nodded. "Sure, why not? I'd bang her."

Snow let out a scoff that almost sounded like a snort. "Wow, no wonder you have all the girls buckling in the knees, you're so eloquent! And here I thought you were an Effie Trinket kind of guy."

"Ha, not even close. Speaking of Effie Trinket, what was up with your costume?"

"I told you I was going to be Liv Moore from _iZombie_ , it's from the second episode of this season when she ate a frat boy brain and turned into a party girl. I'm surprised you went as Fry."

"I know, I was kind of hoping you'd go as Jem. I guess it was just shocking seeing you without your streaks." Will twirled one of the blue strands in her hair. "Promise me you'll never get rid of them, ok?"

"Since when? You made fun of me for them my first day."

"They're so definitive of you. I've always liked them. Haven't you caught on yet that I gave you such a hard time because I wasn't sure I liked you?"

Snow looked into his eyes, knowing that he was telling the truth. It made her heart leap out of her chest a bit, but it really was the best feeling.

"I wasn't sure, either. You're kind of an enigma, but I'm up for the challenge."

"Ditto. What did you tell everybody why you left?"

"That I had a headache, what about you?"

"Early CrossFit class."

"You do CrossFit?" She eyed his body up and down, which looked very defined in his jeans and long sleeved shirt. "I'm surprised, I thought sex was your only workout."

"Hardly. I was on the track and basketball teams in high school and college, I've never stopped working out."

"And here I thought we had nothing in common."

"Very funny. Maybe I will go tomorrow, I'll need it after this." He held up his spoon before taking another bite. "Although, your brownies are pretty great."

"Thanks."

She looked up at him and started giggling.

"What? What's so funny?"

"Nothing, you've got ice cream on your face. I'll get it."

Snow reached over, putting their bowls on the coffee table and swiping the ice cream off his face. She stuck her finger in her mouth, slowly sucking the deliciousness away, figuring it wouldn't hurt to tease him a little. Judging by how his mouth was slightly hanging open and the intent look he was giving her, it seemed to be doing the trick.

"There, all gone."

"Well, now there's something _else_ that isn't gone."

Grabbing her wrist with a sly grin, Will pulled Snow into his lap and kissed her fervently. She put her hands on his shoulders to sit up as she swung her legs to be on either side of him in a straddling position. His hands immediately went straight for her backside.

"Have I ever told you how your ass is beyond magnificent?"

"No, you haven't. You really think that?" She asked, kissing his neck.

He nodded, massaging her lower back. "Oh, yeah. I think that's why I approached you that first day. I walked in and saw that butt, except I couldn't hit on you right there." Will kissed her neck and spanked her, causing her to gasp. "Snow, I've wanted you for such a long time. I was so blue balled thinking about you some days that I could hardly walk. I've actually had to take care of myself at work a couple times."

She looked down on him with a raised eyebrow. "So basically you were only interested in sleeping with me?"

"What? No! Of course not. I like your personality and all that, too. It adds to the already hot package."

Snow wasn't sure what to feel at that moment. Was he just trying to add another name to his list?

He must have been able to read her mind or judge by the look on her face because the next thing Will did was cup her cheek, giving her a sincere look. "Honey, in the short time we've known each other, we've been through too much for me to only see you as a piece of ass. You'll always hold a special place in my heart."

"Really?"

"Of course."

While Snow knew that Will was guarded, she never thought he'd say something like this. Now it was time for her to let a guard down, too.

"Will, there's some things I need to discuss with you." She rubbed his shoulders. "It's not easy, a lot of it is pretty tough and embarrassing, and I just-"

He cut her off, uniting their lips again with his hand on the back of her head. Whenever they kissed, her mind went blank.

Things began to move quickly, hands groping and feeling, tongues sliding back and forth, one waist teasing another. Snow's jacket shortly joined Will's shirt on the floor, her hands running all along his defined chest and toned arms. Sans shirt, he looked exactly like in her dream.

"What do you say we take this to my bedroom?" Will asked in between kisses, his hands getting impatient, grabbing her hips, pulling the front of her tank top down lower to kiss in between her breasts.

"I want to, it's just that..."

This time Snow was the one to cut them off. She couldn't think straight as their make out session became more heated, gripping each other's hair, deepening their kisses, Will's hardness pressing up against her sex, arousals at an all time high. They were so immersed in each other that they didn't even hear the front door open.

"Will, you bailed too early. You missed out on Otis doing the moonwalk..."

Jay trailed off as Will and Snow looked over at him, seemingly in shock from being caught in their sensual state and compromising position.

"Jay..."

Jay held his hands up. "Whoops, sorry, bro."

"Oh, my god! This is your brother?!" Snow got up, a big smile on her face as she made her way over to Jay. "Hi! I'm Snow, and it's so great to finally meet you." She gave Jay a hug, making him laugh, but he reciprocated.

"It's really nice to meet you, too, Snow. I've heard a lot about you."

"I'm sure you have. I've seen you at Molly's and the hospital a couple times but never got around to saying hi. I've met Erin before, she's sweet."

"Yeah, she's a little rough around the edges, but she's my girl."

Snow looked over his shoulder to see the time on the microwave. "Oh, crap. I completely lost track of the time."

"Oh, you don't have to go because Jay's here." Will said after putting his shirt back on, holding a throw pillow on his lap to hide the obvious as his brother nodded.

"Yeah, I actually swung by to pick up my cellphone charger."

Snow shook her head, picking her jacket up and putting it on. "No, no, it's totally fine. I'm sure you guys want to catch up, it's been a long work week."

"I see him every day..." Will mumbled under his breath. "We were having such a great time."

"I know, but it's pretty late. I'll see you tomorrow." Snow leaned over the couch and gave Will a kiss on the lips. "Sweet dreams, Fry."

He nodded, trying to pull her back by the hand, but she let it slip through. "Urgh, fine."

"You guys caught up on _The Hunger Games_ , huh? Erin is a big fan." Jay said, looking over at the DVDS.

"Yes, we did. I'm so excited for _Mockingjay: Part Two_! Only three more weeks!" Snow raised her arm at Will, doing the three fingered salute from the movie. "Fire is catching, Halstead."

Will weakly gave her the salute back. "You know it."

"It was nice meeting you, Jay. I'll see you both around." Snow waved to them as Jay opened the door for her. In a way, she was kind of grateful that Jay interrupted them, things were getting hot and she almost acted on impulse when she clearly shouldn't.

"Drive safe."

Jay shut the door and looked over at his brother. "You're right, she is pretty cute."

Will nodded. "Yeah, I know. Thanks a lot, cock blocker."

"What?" Jay asked with a laughing smile. "How was I supposed to know you were out here? You're usually in your room."

"Yeah, yeah. Well, at least one of us is getting lucky tonight."

"Ha, probably. I know I just met Snow, but I think she'll be good for you." Jay messed with Will's hair as he walked by, the older Halstead smacking his hand away. "Don't try to mess this one up."

Once Jay had left the room, it gave Will time to think on his words. Something about them made him a bit jumpy. Could things between him and Snow get serious? Was she a good fit for him? His mind began to wander as he descended to the bathroom for a cold shower...


	13. Date Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snow reflects on how to approach Connor; Will and Snow have their first official date, including nerves and a new friend; Snow and Will grow closer.

**Hi, everybody! So stoked for the shows next week, can't believe the seasons are ending soon! I would have updated sooner but we took my grandma out for her birthday. Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed: Lilli89, M39151, Ms. Isabella, and TheIrishShipperholic! Be sure to check out their stories, they are quite awesome! Especially my new story with TheIrishShipperholic, "Giving You My Heart"! Be on the lookout, because a secret or two of Snow's will come to the light soon enough!**

**_Chapter Thirteen: Date Night_ **

"Good day, sunshine!" Snow said as she came through the door following her morning run, seeing Sylvie at the breakfast bar.

The Indiana blonde smiled at her Michigan roomie. "Hey, you! I didn't hear you come, must've had a late night, huh?"

Snow smiled as she poured herself a cup of coffee. "Um, something like that."

"I'll take that as a yes, so tell me what you can." Sylvie took a bite of her English muffin. "Just skip ahead to after Molly's."

Snow sat down after putting a bagel in the toaster. "Well, before I get there, something else happened. Connor kind of dumped me."

Sylvie's eyes widened. "Really? I thought you guys were doing the whole no strings/no labels thing."

"It was going to come to an end eventually, I just wanted to pull the plug first. I'm thinking that somehow Connor caught on about me and Will, and I really don't know how."

"Snow, come on. It's totally obvious you two like each other. He was so over protective of you at the bar last night."

"Yeah, that's true, I should probably talk to Connor though, once things are more figured out. Connor was terrific, but I couldn't entirely get comfortable with him. Will is a different story, he's so simplistic and he tries way too hard to be a lothario, but it kind of adds to his charm."

The chorus of "On My Mind" by Ellie Goulding started playing from Snow's phone. She burst into a huge smile, looking down to see who it was.

"Speak of the devil?" Sylvie asked, to which Snow nodded.

"Yep. It says "Hey Jem, I had a great time with you last night, even if you were secretly drooling over Josh Hutcherson. Sorry our moment got interrupted, but I was hoping to make up for it as well as taking you on a proper date. How about dinner tonight?" Snow bit her lip.

Sylvie smiled at her reaction. "Your face is so red right now! You must really like him."

Snow restrained her giggles before straightening up and nodding. "Yeah, I do. It's exciting and a bit frightening. He doesn't know everything about me, and I'm apprehensive to tell him. It's a lot to handle, what if he can't?" She heavily sighed.

Not that many people knew her secrets. Besides her family, Skeet and Emily, she had told Sylvie before even moving to Chicago. Sharon Goodwin, Dr. Charles and Dr. Downey already knew because of her parents, and she had a feeling Maggie knew as well. Will had already endured such a hard life, what if he saw her struggles as some kind of a burden?

"I think he's let his guard down more with you than he has the whole time he's been in Chicago. You just have to take that leap and tell him."

"You're right, I will. I just don't know when."

**_CHICAGO MED_ **

"Hey, April. How's it going?" Snow asked as she went into the break room, seeing that her friend had a worried look on her face. "What's wrong?"

"Girl, I don't know where you went to last night, but you missed out."

"What do you mean?" Snow asked, raising an eyebrow.

April beckoned her over. "What's going on with you and Connor?"

"Uh, nothing. It was a mutual decision to end things. Why?"

"I'm just giving you a heads up because we are friends, but he seems to have moved on pretty quickly. He was chatting up the Ice Queen all night and they left together."

"Dr. Zanetti? You're kidding me."

Dr. Samantha Zanetti worked alongside them at Chicago Med, a blonde that had the face of a twelve year old but not the mentality of one. In fact, she kind of had no personality.

April shook her head. "I wish I was. Looks like you did a number on him, girl."

"I didn't mean to, I swear it. I should talk to him, once everything settles."

Connor had been nothing but kind to her since she got to Chicago Med, she really did owe him an explanation, it was a matter of trying to formulate what she wanted to say.

Out of the corner of her eye Snow saw Will at the front desk and smiled. Last night was a lot of fun, even if they were interrupted. He must have noticed, because he smiled and did the three finger salute. Snow laughed and returned the signal, which was interrupted by Natalie walking up to the desk and giving him a strange look, which made him snap back to normal.

She was excited for the date tonight, but that didn't mean she felt any less guilty about Connor.

**_LATER THAT NIGHT_ **

"Hey, Will. You look nice." Sylvie said as she opened the door. She was decked out in a ponytail and pajamas with a carton of Dreyer's Vanilla Caramel Gelato.

"Thanks." Will said, walking inside. He decided to keep it casual with a long sleeved shirt and jeans with a blazer. "You look like you're ready for a night in."

"Sure am. I've got the latest season of _Downton Abbey_ on DVR, Domino's on the way and a kiwi cucumber mask, I'm golden."

"Sounds like fun."

"Hi, Fry!"

Will and Sylvie looked over to see Snow walking down the stairs, her long hair sleek and straightened, dressed in a black dress with a scalloped chest, lavender jewelry and matching lavender scalloped shoes.

"H-H-hi. Wow, you look really pretty."

"He's right. Seriously, Snow, you look like a million bucks."

"Ha, thanks. Hey, you." Snow walked up, putting her hands on Will's shoulders and kissing him on the mouth, popping her foot. When she pulled away, she saw that Will was blushing. "You cut your hair, I like it." His hair was shorter and looked a lot better than the foxy 'do he had.

"Thanks. These are for you." He held up a bouquet of pinkish white flowers. "They're-"

"Snowdrops." Snow sniffed the flowers. "Where did you find these?"

"Let's just say that I had to go a far ways to get them for you, but it was worth it to see that smile."

"Here, I've got these." Sylvie took the flowers out of Snow's hand. "You guys have a good time, and don't be out too late now."

"Ha, we won't." Snow grabbed her coat. "Have a relaxing evening." She turned to Will. "Hey, would you mind meeting me outside? I have to use the restroom really quick."

"Sure, no problem. Take your time."

Snow waited until he was gone before turning to Sylvie. "Sylvie, I'm nervous again! What do I do? I can't think of anything to talk about, my mind is a blank!"

The blonde's eyebrows went up. "Why? You've hung out with him before, I think you two know each other pretty well by now."

"I know, but it's our first date date. I just know I'm going to say or do something stupid." Snow grabbed the spoon out of Sylvie's hand and took a huge scoop of gelato, shoving it in her mouth before wincing. "Damn it! Brain freeze!"

"Snow, relax!" Sylvie put the carton down and grabbed her roommate by the shoulders. "Re-lax. It's going to be a lovely evening, I'm sure. Enjoy yourself, you've been through a lot lately and you deserve it."

"You're right, I hate how I get so worked up and anxious. That gelato is amazing, by the way." Snow hugged her roommate. "Thanks for everything. You're such a great friend, you know that?"

"Hey, I'm just speaking the truth."

"Have fun with _Downton Abbey_." Snow put her black cropped fur coat on and walked out the door, smiling when she saw Will at the bottom of the steps. "Hi."

"Hey. You alright?"

"Mmhmm." Snow took Will's hand in her's once she reached him. "Ready to go? I sure am."

"Yeah." He leaned down, putting a hand on her face as they kissed, their tongues sliding back and forth. When they pulled away, he was smiling. "Mmm, you were right."

Snow gave him a puzzled look. "Right about what?"

"That gelato _is_ amazing." Will smiled at her before walking to his car, leaving Snow in shock.

"You heard that?!"

He shrugged, opening her car door. "Yeah, I did. It was kind of hard not to. You coming or am I going to dinner by myself?"

 

"That was a terrific dinner, thanks so much."

Dinner had been a little awkward at first, Snow kept rambling, but they quickly were able to fall into a nice pace conversation wise. Now, they were walking downtown, admiring the autumn street fair which kept nighttime Chicago bustling, especially for a Saturday night.

"No problem, I really enjoy myself when I'm with you."

There were times where Will knew he was trying too hard, but Snow was very sincere and nonjudgmental, which helped him ease up. He never expected to date a girl like her, so down to earth and a bit reserved, but he was getting quite comfortable with it.

"So does that mean you're the Rio to my Jem?" Snow looked up at him from where her head was resting on his shoulder as they walked hand in hand. Perhaps she shouldn't have put him on the spot like that, but she had meant for it to be more tongue-in-cheek than anything.

Will looked down at her, unsure of how to answer that, but found himself smiling. "Did you want me to?"

"Maybe, if you dye your hair. I can totally see you rocking the dark hair."

"Ha, I don't know if I'd go that far. I'm being serious, Jem, do you?"

They stopped walking and faced each other. Now she was the one on the spot, and as nervous as it made her, she also found herself to be giddy.

"I wouldn't object to it. I think the real question is if you want to, Casanova."

He shrugged and leaned down to her level. "Why not?" Sure, he had apprehensions, but he was curious to see where it could actually go. Could Snow end up being a serious girlfriend?

Just as their lips were about to touch, she looked over and squealed, clapping her hands together. "Ooo! Will, look! A baseball booth!" Snow yanked him by the hand through the street fair until arriving at a booth with lined up plastic bottles. "How's your throw?"

"Pretty good from what I remember. We'll take three." Will fished a $10 out of his wallet and gave it to the vendor, who lined up three thick baseballs in front of him.

Snow clapped her hands for him. "Come on, Halstead. Win me something pretty."

"Ha, we'll see."

He threw the first baseball, which ended up tearing a hole in the backdrop. Snow covered her mouth, trying not to laugh. The second one wasn't much better, even though he actually swung his arm a couple times.

"Will, you've got it all wrong. It's like this."

Snow picked up the last ball, tossing it a couple times before throwing the ball, knocking out the bottles.

"We have a winner!" The vendor shouted.

Snow gasped in happiness. "Will! I did it, I did it!" She jumped up and wrapped her arms around his neck, her legs kicked back.

**_She's certainly made up for how shy she was when we first met._ **

"You did, great job, Jem."

"Here you go, miss." The vendor handed her a plastic water filled bag containing a goldfish.

"Thanks." Snow smiled when she took the bag. "Awww, it's so cute!" She handed it to Will. "Here, I want you to have it."

He shook his head. "You won it, you should have it."

"No, you should take him."

"How do you even know it's a boy?"

"I have a feeling." Snow tried to pout but it came out a smirk. "Please? It would make me really happy."

"Alright."

He felt his heart rate pick up over her smile.

"Yay. I'm absolutely thrilled, Will. What should we name him?" Snow asked as they walked through the street fair once more.

"I don't know, I'm not good with names."

Snow stopped and snapped her fingers. "I got it! How about Nemo?"

"Wasn't he a clown fish?"

She nodded. "Yeah, but 'Goldie' is so cliché."

"Nemo it is, then. We should probably get him in a bowl, know what I'm saying?"

Snow looked up at him with a raised eyebrow. "Do you really think I'm going to fall for that? You're just trying to get me to your place."

Will smiled innocently. "What? You don't want anything to happen to Nemo, do you? It'll just be for a moment, I swear."

She hesitated in her reply. After all, he did have a point.

"Ok, fine. I'm gonna hold you to that, Halstead."

 

"There you go. Have fun in there." Will emptied Nemo into Jay's fish tank filled with brightly colored pebbles and numerous toys.

"Good thing you guys had the fish tank already, huh?" Snow leaned down, watching Nemo swim by himself. "Maybe you should consider getting him a Dory." She laughed to herself. "Leaf is so stoked for that movie."

"I bet. He's an excitable little boy. Then again, so was I at that age and my brother."

"I'd love to see a picture."

Will nodded his head to the fireplace mantle. "They're right over there."

Snow straightened up and walked over, seeing a picture of Will and Jay by a Christmas tree, they couldn't have been much older than eight and six. "Awww! You guys are so adorable! Not much has changed, you're both still cute now."

"Ha, thanks, babe."

She glanced over at another picture, a black and white one of a slim woman in a maxi dress with what looked like strawberry blonde hair walking down a beach. It must have been a windy day because she was pushing the hair out of her face and laughing.

"She's beautiful, Will."

Snow couldn't even begin to imagine the kind of pain both Will and Jay were in, if she lost either of her parents tomorrow the world would be shattered. All she could do was be there for him and hoped he'd open up to her more, like she would for him.

"I hope one day you trust me enough to bare your whole soul."

She turned around, not even noticing he was behind her. The look in her violet-grey eyes was so truthful and sincere, like he could trust her with the pains of his past, like he could actually fall for her...

"I'm sure I will."

He twirled a magenta streak of her hair in his fingers, looking down on her. Although Will would never admit it, sometimes he was intimidated by Snow. Her shyness made her more intriguing and when she was extroverted she displayed an enviable wit and confidence.

"You're so beautiful, you know that?"

She laughed, looking all around as her face went red. "Oh, I don't know about that, but-"

Will shook his head. "Yes, you do."

His hand moved up her neck, pulling her closer to him, their lips colliding as his other hand was on her hip. She must have been chewing gum at some point, he could taste the berries and peppermint on her tongue, even faint traces of the gelato from earlier.

If there was one quality in particular that Snow liked about Will, he was in fact a good kisser. She found herself leaning into him, being coaxed out of her jacket and letting it fall to the floor, her hands on his shoulders.

Snow let out the lightest moan into his mouth, it was the starting note that vibrated his physical metronome, and he had to have her. Never breaking the kiss, Will bent down slightly, one arm wrapping around her back and the other going under her things, lifting Snow off the ground. He knew that when they came back here that she wouldn't be leaving anytime soon.

Once he laid her on the bed, his hands glided all over her young body as he began nipping on her neck, making her gasp. She couldn't even describe how turned on she was becoming, the truth would be in her panties if he finally got there... but did she want him to? As turned on as she was, Snow had to break the silence.

"Will, this feels so good, but-"

"Just keep enjoying it. You've been so tense lately. How about I give you a massage?" Will asked, kissing Snow from her neck to her chest, the straps of her dress slipping off her shoulders from their physical friction.

"That's nice of you, but I-"

He stopped and looked down, towering over her on all fours.

"Snow, relax. I want you to feel comfortable around me."

"I-I do, except..." She found herself stammering and looked at the dresser until Will leaned her up against the headboard, one hand underneath her cheek.

"Except what, sweetheart? Is this about Natalie or Connor?"

"No, uh, maybe a little bit..." Snow shook her head. "I mean, no. No, it's not."

His intense gaze bore into hers, making her feel so small, she wasn't used to his suaveness. Part of it excited her and made her want to give in to their mutual desires while the other part was terrified and wanted nothing more than to run away.

"Don't tell me that you don't want me as much as I want you, as much as I've wanted you. If you don't, I'll stop and drive you home. If that isn't the case, then I don't think there should be anything stopping us."

His fingers stroked her cheeks and traced over her lips. What the hell was Snow talking about that she didn't know she was beautiful? She was, inside and out, probably the prettiest girl at Gaffney.

Snow's hands went to his face. "Don't you see?" She leaned up and kissed him sweetly before pulling away. "Of course I want you, too. I have for a long time, but there's more than one side to me that you should know about."

Will could tell she was nervous, which he didn't want. He had to show his compassionate side.

"Snow, I'm aware of your secret."


	14. Rained In, Part Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snow and Will take their relationship to more than one level.

**Hi, everybody! I would have updated sooner but we took my grandma out for her birthday. Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed: blackvelvetrose, M39151, and Ms. Isabella! Be sure to check out their stories, they are quite awesome! Especially my new story with TheIrishShipperholic, _Giving You My Heart_ ! If you want to see/read more of Will and Snow, please be sure to check out Ms. Isabella's _Walking on a Thin Line,_ which is a Connor/OC love story and absolutely wonderful! You might recognize Cassie from her recurring appearances in _Checkered Hearts._**

**_Chapter Fourteen: Rained In, Part One_ **

Snow blinked, completely dumbfounded as to what he meant. "Wait, what?"

"I know that you have breast implants. I was a resident plastic surgeon in New York, so I've done countless augmentations." Will looked down at her chest with a grin. "From what I can tell, it's a great job well done."

While that was one of her secrets, it wasn't the main secret, he didn't know the reason why she had the implants. Snow swallowed the lump in her throat, feeling the tears brim her eyelids, her heart wildly beating. "That's not all. Will, you need to know why-"

He shook his head, shushing her and putting a finger to her perfectly pink lips. "I do want to know why, at some point. I can tell it's upsetting you and I don't like to see that, especially when you have such a terrific smile. I really want us to get closer."

"I'm a born again virgin." She blurted out, watching him shake his head in confusion, prompting her to continue. Maybe it was too soon to tell him everything, he'd run for the hills, but she'd have to tell him this one thing. "Ok, maybe not a born again virgin, but revirginized in a sense. Some things happened, I got caught up with school and work, Skeet was always stoned, so I've been celibate for the past year and a half. That and who the hell knows what you have? No offense, but I've heard you're quite the man whore."

This wasn't Will's first virgin and he had ended many a celibacy streak, but there was something so endearing about doing that for Snow.

"I don't judge you for that. Also, I was just tested, I have the results if you want to peruse them. Do you want this to further progress, Snow? Please, I can make you feel incredible, and it would make me really happy to know that I could do that. It's all about you right now, don't hold anything back. I'm up for anything, but just know I'll respect you and your decision either way."

Will didn't have the same ardent aggression or conceited demeanor that he did that night in her bedroom or even on the roof. Right now he was being very sweet with her.

**_I should tell him, he needs to know, but I know it's going to scare him off. Although, he's so sexy and ever since my dream I've been thinking nonstop about what it would be like..._ **

She nodded, unable to stop herself. If the past year taught her anything, it was that things weren't going to happen on their own, she needed to make them happen for herself.

"I want this."

Snow sat up until their lips met, allowing herself to get lost in the passion. Right now, he was the only thing she wanted.

Will laid Snow down, his hands unzipping her dress. Helping her out, he couldn't help but grin over the grey and pink slip she had on underneath.

"You came prepared, I'm impressed."

The second he got her panties off, Will buried his head underneath the slip, kissing her thighs. He still had the five o'clock shadow scruff, which made Snow start twitching, trying everything not to laugh. This wasn't her first time experiencing oral sex, she had done it before with Skeet, but with Will things were different.

He began slowly licking in circles on her lips, gradually working his way up by teasing her clit before losing himself in her taste. Her hands started fidgeting slightly, not knowing what to do until holding onto a pillow. Snow couldn't lay still, moaning as her body spasmed. Every stroke of his tongue sent an electric shock throughout her, and when his movements sped up, she could have sworn she saw stars.

She was taken by surprise when he didn't finish. When Snow finally opened her eyes after what felt like an eternity, Will was rubbing lubricant on his condom covered phallus.

"Are you ready for me?"

Snow was at a loss for words, all she could do was nod. The faint glimmer of moonlight peeking through the window reminded her of how a Greek god would look, cut up and chiseled.

Hovering above, he kissed her as he lined himself up. Snow gasped at Will's swift entry, glad that he was able to put those condoms to good use. Truth be told, she hadn't been able to stop thinking about his cock since that day she caught him and Zoe in the storage closet, and now it was inside her.

She clutched onto him as he languidly moved, her mind in a fog. Was it too soon? It wasn't like they could stop now. That and she was enjoying herself.

"Tell me what you like. I want to take my time with you." Will kissed her, his movements never stopping. This felt like deja vu, it was almost identical to her dream.

"Would it be alright if you went a little faster? Not Energizer Bunny fast, maybe somewhere in the middle?"

"Are you sure?"

She nodded. "Yes."

As his rhythm increased, Will couldn't stop staring at her. After lusting after her for nearly two months, she was finally here. Neither one of them knew what would happen after tonight, but it didn't matter, the only thing that mattered was now.

Snow's eyes were closed, knowing she'd get dizzy if she opened them, but she dared herself to try. All she saw was the warmness in his chocolate brown orbs, and she could feel her guard melting in sync with her soul.

Will always felt a woman was at her most vulnerable on the peaks of passion, no materialistic armor to conceal them from the rest of the world. When she looked into his eyes, he saw some of her shyness fade away and a woman emerging, a woman that wasn't afraid to express her desires.

"Mmm, Will..." She cooed in his ear, kissing his jaw.

"Snow," He cupped her face in his hands as he continued making love to her. "I know that things haven't been easy for us, but please don't forget how I think you're a beautiful girl. You are, and not just physically." Will kissed her fervently, their tongues madly crossing and sucking, his hands moving to her hips, sliding deeper inside.

"I really appreciate you saying that." Snow could no longer talk, all forms of speech were only coming out in moans and gasps, embracing him tighter as her climax hit. The earth was shaken by lust, her mind spiraling into the universe, too lost in this release that she barely heard him join her mere seconds later.

Both of them were covered in sweat, their bodies practically sticking together, the pit pattering of the rain that they hadn't noticed before becoming heavier. Snow waited to speak until their panting breaths died down.

"Now I know why you're so full of yourself, you're multitalented."

He chuckled and kissed her cheek. "Well, all I can say is if you want to be the best, you do what you can to make sure you're better than everybody else."

"Ahh, no wonder you're so cocky."

Perhaps Will being a player was an act to suppress his sensitive and gentle side, because as far as Snow was concerned, maybe this was the real him.

"Only sometimes."

There was a comfortable silence between them as he got off and pulled Snow against him in a spooning position, his hand stroking her thigh.

"Jem?"

"Yes?" She asked, distracted by his collection of college trophies and Funko Pop collectibles.

"Will you stay with me tonight?"

He didn't have to explain why, she already knew. Snow was glad, because she didn't want to leave, either.

"Of course I will."

Will smiled, kissing her shoulder.

 

"Wow, you weren't kidding when you said he went through a lot." Will said, circling Snow's hip bone through her slip. They were now facing each other, having spent the past couple hours cuddling and opening up about their lives. He usually was more subdued with what he revealed, but Snow's honesty inspired him to do the same.

"It was a very cruel time for us, also a bit confusing. He'd speak in three word sentences, then leave off the first letter of each word, then there was no problem. The leg braces were a nightmare, I was worried he'd have to wear them forever, but the three of us worked together to turn it all around."

"When did you have the time?"

"In between school and work, I'd sit with him and go over the alphabet and words with blocks and flash cards, not to mention tongue twisters. We'd go on walks around the house and then the block, he was eventually able to make it all the way to town and back. In many ways, Leaf is my hero. He's had every single hurdle thrown at him and he never complained once, he knocked them into outer space. I used to worry how it would affect him when he got older, I still do, but as of now he seems to be adjusting well."

"Anybody that meets him can tell he's a fighter. I've only met him twice and I'm feeling a little attached. But no matter what, you and your parents never have to doubt having inner strength."

"Well, it hasn't always been easy." Snow looked down, taking his hand in hers. She so desperately wanted to tell him the rest, about her own issues, but there was something so refreshing about being able to lock the elephant in her mind away.

One day, if things progressed into something more serious, she would have to tell him. Her only hope was Will wouldn't transform into The Flash and bolt out of sight.

"We all have our struggles and triumphs, some harder or easier than others."

She nodded. "Look at you, you came from the South Side and now you're a doctor. You defied the odds, but there's still a void, huh?" Her hands moved up his face, making him look in her eyes. "Don't be scared. You can tell me."

Will heavily sighed and nodded. "Yes." This wasn't usually something he admitted, only Jay and Dr. Charles knew.

"Underneath the stubborn jackass, there's a pretty remarkable guy. One day, you just have to show the rest of the world. I'm glad I was fortunate enough to be one of the people you're opening up around."

"I'm sure one day you'll unlock the rest of my box, but as far as skeletons, you know them all, which is more than I can say about any other girl I've ever dated."

His past broke her heart. Cancer ridden mother, alcoholic father, bullied in school, the only way to let out his frustrations were on the track or basketball court. Honestly, he needed a good cry, but she was too proud to admit that.

"That's the interesting thing about humans, we're multifaceted in personalities and emotions. You have a side that's compassionate and sensitive, whereas I have one that's more playful."

He raised both eye brows, intrigued. "You do?"

Instead of telling him, she decided to show him. Snow grabbed Will by the shoulders, sending him on his back and crashing her lips on his, straddling him. Just like any other girl, she had needs as well, and right now her biggest one was in between his legs. Her hand reached down, feeling his abs along the way before delicately gripping his length.

"I could get used to this." Will's head leaned back into the pillow as he watched her movements.

"Will, I want to..." She whispered in his ear and when she pulled away, he had the biggest smirk on his face.

"Those are definitely amongst my favorite things. Except I have a feeling you're not as experienced as I am, but that's ok. I'm sure to teach you."

He lightly pushed her head downwards as he reached into his night stand, feeling around for lube and another condom...

 

The strident crackling of thunder awoke Snow from a sound sleep. Feeling around for her phone, she saw that it was roughly eight in the morning. She and Will had fallen asleep only a few hours ago, he was still soundly sleeping. When Snow tried to move, his hold around her waist tightened, pulling her back to him.

"Hey, where do you think you're going?" He murmured sleepily against her neck.

"It's pouring outside. Can't you hear it?"

Another spurt of monstrous lightning nearly made the room shake, but he sure jolted up.

"Wow, you were right."

Pulling on his boxer briefs, he got up and looked out the window. "Come here and look outside."

They were both shocked to see how flooded the streets. This wasn't a light drizzle, it was a downpour big and high enough that you could practically canoe in the Chicago streets.

"Good thing I have today off." Will said.

"This storm is expected to last until at least tomorrow."

"Jay is at Erin's, but at least I won't be alone that whole time. I'll have you here with me."

Snow shook her head and walked away, looking for her panties on the floor. "I can't, I have to go home. Sylvie is probably wondering where I am, I'll just take an Uber."

"Sylvie is a grown adult, she probably knows what happened if you haven't told her already. There's no way in hell I'm letting you take an Uber, those drivers are unpredictable. Why are you trying to leave?" Will wrapped his arms around her from behind. "I like having you here."

"I don't want to wear out my welcome."

Will was no different from any guy, he'd want her gone soon enough. To her surprise, he shook his head and wrapped his arms tighter around her.

"Nonsense. You're fine."

This felt a little too good to be true, which probably meant it was, but maybe she should just enjoy it.

"I don't have anything here, I can't wear this all day."

"Well, I wouldn't mind if you did, but here."

He walked over to his dresser and tossed her his favorite Blackhawks jersey.

"This is one of my favorites."

"Thanks."

Snow was incredibly tempted to hold it to her chest and see if his cologne was still on there, but that'd just be way weird.

"So now what?"

Will grinned mischievously to himself, glad she couldn't see him. "Well, I can think of one way to warm up and pass the time..."


	15. Rained In, Part Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snow and Will spend the day and night rained in at his apartment, learning more about each other along the way; Sharon Goodwin and Maggie pick up on why Snow is so happy, and Will starts to regret his actions.

**Hi, everybody! Finally updating! Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed: fallingforfiction, M39151, and Ms. Isabella! Be sure to check out their stories, they are quite awesome!**

**There's quite a few _Chicago_ references in this chapter! Like the part with the bridge club with that episode of _Chicago P.D._ when Herrmann wanted to fix Jay up with some girl from Cindy's bridge club! Lol then Jay and Erin got back together at the end. If you get a chance, look up "The Mountain and The Red Viper" fight on YouTube, talk about intense!**

**_Chapter Fifteen: Rained In, Part Two_ **

Snow let out a final gasp as her orgasm subsided, Will holding onto her from behind as she was against the glass window, a smile on her now rosy face.

"Wow. Will, that was so amazing. I swear I can still see stars."

He leaned into her ear. "I told you shower sex would be something enjoyable."

"Mmhmm and you were right, Gingy Doctor." Still smiling, she turned around and kissed him ardently, letting the steaminess of the shower envelope their wet bodies and rapture their souls. They had been in there for at least two hours, she was amazed there was any hot water left.

Giving her a brief smack on the butt, he pressed them to the wall with his muscular body, his hands never leaving her curves. "Yes, I was. I'm really glad you let me see you fully naked."

Snow couldn't help but burst into laughter, having to hold onto his arm so she wouldn't fall.

"Why is that hilarious?"

"You just sounded like such a horny teenager, that's all. It was cute. Maybe you could be the next Patch Adams, you're funny."

"Well, I try. I'm just saying you're shy at times."

She rolled her eyes at him. "I think I've proved that I'm not. You want to hear something kind of odd?" Snow wrung out her hair and stepped out of the shower, drying herself off with one of Will's giant fluffy towels before wrapping it around her.

"What?" He followed her, wrapping a towel around his fit waist, watching her brushing her hair on his bed.

"I had a dream a few weeks ago with you in it. Connor woke me up in my bed and we started kissing, but I recognized your cologne. I opened my eyes and you told me how much you liked me, and then we started getting intimate."

Will cracked a smile over that. "Wow, are you serious? You picked me over Handsome Doctor in a dream _and_ real life?" He put a hand to his heart. "I'm stunned."

"Ha ha, don't get too much of a big head now. Besides, you're handsome in your own way."

"Thank you, I think?"

Snow glanced over at him and smiled. "Well, we've been having sex multiple times since last night, so you tell me." She walked up to Will, putting her hands on his shoulders.

"Then thank you. Which reminds me," Will put his hands on her hips. "what's your take on role play? Zoe used to do this whole _I Dream of Jeannie_ routine for me."

"Well, considering Zoe looks exactly like a Barbie doll, she can get away with that. Not every girl is that lucky."

He gave her a funny look. "What's that supposed to mean? Is somebody body conscious? You have a lovely figure, hun. I know I can't keep my hands off of it." Will bent down, kissing her neck as his hands moved from her hips to her butt, giving it a squeezed, which made her giggle.

"Will!"

"What?" He kissed her way up her neck as she laughed until he was at her lips, kissing them as they fell back on the bed, her body pressed underneath him. "I only speak the truth, sweet girl." Will looked down, stroking her cheek with his thumb. "Such a sweet, pretty girl. I really do think you're the prettiest girl at the hospital."

Snow scoffed. "Yeah, right! How could you even say that with April working there? She's gorgeous! When I grow up, I wanna look like her, or Rosalyn Sanchez or Miranda Kerr or Salma Hayek or Olivia Wilde! Yeah, I wanna look _just like_ Olivia Wilde."

"Why would you want to look like somebody else other than yourself?"

His smile disappeared and he started feeling horribly for all the things he said to her recently. "I know I should have said this sooner, but I'm really sorry for being such a jerk the other day, with the comment about your eating."

She shook her head. "I know you didn't mean it, but like I said, that's not going to break me. When I finally do tell you, you'll see that I'm right."

"Why won't you tell me now?" He asked, the concern so clear in his eyes.

"I don't want to ruin the moment, it's way too fantastic. As for now." Snow got a mischievous glint in her eye, yanking his towel off from underneath, loving the tiniest blush his face had. "I'm kind of dead set on putting those condoms to good use. I wanna see how far you can go, playboy."

"Hmm, well..." Will responded by ripping Snow's towel, smiling at her surprised laugh. "I have a feeling that can be arranged."

"I'm holding you to it."

This was very unlike Snow, she was usually quite shy and wouldn't have even showered with another guy that wasn't a serious boyfriend, but there was something about Will Halstead that made her want to break free and be somebody other than herself... There were days when she wished she was anybody else...

 

* * *

 

"You know, you're the youngest girl I've ever dated."

Snow looked over at him, her mouth flying open in mockery. "Oh, my god! We're dating?! Quick, grab my phone so I can tell _TMZ_."

Will rolled his eyes, wrapping his arm tighter around her waist, they were currently on the couch with a huge bowl of freshly popped popcorn, watching _Game of Thrones_ while a fire crackled in the fireplace. "You know what I meant. Dated, gone out with, it's all the same thing. The most of an age gap was maybe three years, but you and I are at least ten years apart in age. That means when you were in diapers I was playing Donkey Kong."

"Does it really matter? I'm legal, and don't sit there and tell me you've never tapped any barely legal ass."

"Ha, that's a tale for another day, cupcake." He glanced at the TV in a grimace. "How can you watch this show? It's so violent. Don't you get nightmares?"

"You sound like Grandma Greyson. No, I don't. Neither does Leaf."

"Leaf watches _Game of Thrones_?! No way!" Will was further surprised when she nodded.

"Yep. Except for I cover his eyes during the nudie scenes. He's too young to care though."

"So like every time? That Melisandre chick is always naked, it's kind of sexy."

"Tell me about it, I would kill for her confidence. She's supposedly more than one hundred years old, it's that choker keeping her youthful."

"Either way, she's hot... But not like you, babe. If you wanted to start walking around in the buff, I'd totally support it."

Snow had to slap her hand over her mouth so she wouldn't spit out popcorn. "Yeah, right! I'm sure the Gaffney staff would love that. _Naked Hospital_ , that's a new one."

"Hey, who said anything about the hospital?" Will pulled her in for a kiss. "I was talking about for my viewing pleasure only."

"Hmm, I'll think about it."

"I can't believe your parents are ok with him watching _Game of Thrones_."

"Leaflet's been through a lot, nothing fazes him, and he's a good little boy. He and I are the dynamic duo, wacky but cool. I'll have to show you our _Bob's Burgers_ "Burgers and Fries" dance."

"Ha, now I really need to see that."

"Haven't you noticed that my parents are kind of hippies? We all watch together. I don't know how we'll do it in a few months when the show comes back. I'm not sure if I'll be making the commute from Chicago to Frankenmuth every Sunday for ten weeks."

He shook his head. "No, they've always been very polite and professional to me. Like seriously, I'm a grown man and I'm a bit squeamish over this."

"We've seen worse in the E.R.! Don't be such a wuss, Halstead."

They continued watching The Mountain and The Red Viper battling each other for Tyrion Lannister's fate.

"Hey, if Connor and I were in a trial by combat for you, who would win? Who would you bet on?"

Snow was touched by this question, but forced herself to laugh. "That's sweet, but don't be so insecure. I doubt either one of you could do that." She pointed to the TV, Gregor Clegane "The Mountain" flipping over Oberyn Martell "The Red Viper".

"Ahhh, shit! No! Oberyn didn't stab him in the head! He should have stabbed Gregor in the head, confirmed kill. I can't watch, it's going to be bad."

"No! No, no, no." Snow got behind Will, wrapping her legs around his waist and forcing his eyes open. "You have to see this to believe it."

"No, I can't." He reached behind and tried to tickle her, but she tightened her grip on him.

"You are not going to tickle your way out of this!"

They watched as The Mountain punched out The Red Viper's teeth, gouge his eyes out and smash his face in, all the while Oberyn's paramour Ellaria Sand screaming her head off.

"Holy fucking shit! I can't unsee that! Tyrion is so screwed here."

"I had the same reaction, my dad thought it was funny. It makes The Red Wedding look like child's play."

There was a bit of silence as the credits rolled when the most random idea popped into Snow's head.

"Hey, Will?"

"Hmmm?"

"Have you ever had a spider monkey hand job?"

"A what?" He raised an eyebrow, followed by a sly grin. "That sounds intriguing and how do you know this?"

Snow laughed to herself as she opened the front of his pants, sliding her hand inside his boxer briefs. "Let's just say I had a lot of summer reading." She nibbled at his neck as she stroked him, smiling when he moaned...

 

* * *

 

"Hey, how was it out there?" Snow asked as soon as Will came through the door.

"Crazy, good thing we ordered on the app, there was a line out the door." Will set down the plastic bags filled with Panda Express.

"Well, you braved the storm, and that deserves a kiss." She walked over, putting her hands on his face and giving him a peck before looking into the bags. "You also got my order right, which deserves another kiss." Snow wrapped an arm around his neck and kissed him again, making Will laugh.

"Wow, you sure do have a lot of kisses to give around. What has it been like dating in Chicago?"

Snow shrugged, pulling the food containers out of the bags. "No different than anywhere else, except more people eager to set me up."

"Like who?" Will asked, looking for wine glasses.

"Well, Kim set me up with Greg a.k.a. Mouse, then I've hung out with Kelly Severide but we're just friends, after that was Connor and now you. Funny enough, Herrmann's wife Cindy wanted to fix me up with your brother before he and Erin became official. She would go on and on about it at bridge club."

"Bridge club..." Will trailed off, his eyes widening. "Wait, that was you? What are you doing in a bridge club?"

"I love bridge, I play with Grandpa Singer all the time. So you knew about Cindy wanting to fix us up?"

"Actually, I was trying to take you for myself, but the second I heard bridge club I was out. It's an old ladies game."

Snow rolled her eyes and snorted. "Wow, you are such a dork, you know that? It's not an old lady game, it helps with memory and tactics."

"There's a lot I don't know about you still. Red or white?"

She shook her head. "I don't drink, remember?"

"Oh, yeah. My bad."

"No, it's fine. There's still a lot I don't know about you, either, but I hope to find out."

* * *

 

"I'll tell them how I survive it. I'll tell them that on bad mornings, it feels impossible to take pleasure in anything because I'm afraid it could be taken away. That's when I make a list in my head of every act of goodness I've seen someone do. It's like a game. Repetitive. Even a little tedious after more than 20 years. But there are much worse games to play. The End."

Snow wiped a tear from her eye as she closed _The Hunger Games: Mockingjay_ , the final book of the trilogy, her other hand in Will's hair while his head was on her chest, his arm wrapped around her stomach. "That was some ending. Katniss is forever the queen of cool."

"I thought it was cute how you got choked up. Seriously, Snow, have you considered doing voice over work? You speak and read with such inflection, much better than the drone on Audible when I was on the train to Michigan."

"You read _The Hunger Games_ on the way to see me?"

He nodded. "It was a long ass ride, I did a book an hour. The first book of _The Hunger Games_ , _Gone Girl,_ _The Girl on The Train_ -"

"How apropos." She said with a titter.

"And _Outlander_."

"You read a lot, I'm impressed."

"I do when I have the time, I don't think I could tackle the _A Song of Ice and Fire_ series like you, though. Those things are freaking tomes!"

"Trust me, you get so entranced and invested with the world. Tell you what, if you read all five books, I'll..." Snow leaned in and whispered in his ear, knowing that what she said put a smile on his face.

"Done and done."

"To answer your question, that's a good idea. Grandpa Greyson worked in radio at one point, but you should be the one to do something like that. You have a sexy voice, when you're not whining."

"I do not whine!"

"Yes, you do!" Snow started laughing as she shoved him away. "It's ok, we all have our quirks."

"And you're full of them."

"There's no denying that." She glanced over at the clock. "Oh, crap. It's nearly eleven and we have to be up early tomorrow for Manic Monday."

"Never a dull moment at Gaffney." Will pulled the sheets and comforter over their bodies and once again wrapped his arm around Snow, closing his eyes. "This has been a really great weekend."

She nodded, using his free arm as a head rest. "It has, but Will, what if somebody catches on? What if they have already?"

"We'll figure it out at some point..."

He was asleep before she could even reply, but Snow was still awake for a few more minutes. The rain softly pouring outside, the feel of his strong arms around her, this all made her heart beat increase and her throat felt dry. She was completely aware of what this meant.

**_I think I'm in love._ **

 

* * *

 

"Good morning, Maggie! Good morning, Ms. Goodwin!" Snow waved as she walked up to the nurses station, picking up a chart.

"Good morning, Snow." Ms. Goodwin greeted.

"Isn't it the most wonderful beautiful morning out after all this rain? It's hard to believe the streets were flooded. I actually saw a family of baby birds singing outside!" She giggled. "This is like something out of a Disney movie and I'm Snow White. I hope you two have an absolutely terrific day! Bye!"

"Bye, Snow." Maggie waved as Snow walked off before turning to Sharon, who had a bemused look on her face.

"Wow, I don't know what she's on, but I want about twenty bowls of it."

Maggie laughed. "I'll tell you what that is... that's clearly a girl in love."

"With Dr. Rhodes?"

Maggie shook her head. "Nope, I think it's Dr. Halstead. Don't tell anybody this, but I saw him kiss her last week in the break room."

Sharon laughing smiled. "Wow, and here I thought he was such a womanizer."

"Let's hope he sticks with one girl and doesn't play them all again."

"Amen to that. She deserves it though." Sharon glanced over at Snow in the break room. "We met before, last year when she was here for her surgery. I was doing my rounds and Dr. Charles introduced me to her parents, her father knows him from college. Her mother was worried she wouldn't make it, but I assured them that she was in excellent hands... You wouldn't even recognize her if you saw her then, she was a shell of what she is now, but imagine lily white skin and lots of IV's."

She didn't realize that her eyes were watering until a lone tear rolled down her cheek. In life, people are dealt with many uncertainties, but this was the most undeserved of all.

Maggie nodded, patting her forearm. "I know. She hasn't said it in so many words, but you know I have that sixth sense."

"Absolutely. No matter what, I think she probably has the biggest heart in this whole place."

"Good morning, you two. How was your weekend?" Will walked up.

Maggie looked over at him with a smile. "Well, well, well. If it isn't Dr. Love?"

"Huh?" Will cocked his head.

"I should get going. I'll see you later, Maggie. Bye, Dr. Halstead."

"What's all that about?" He asked once Ms. Goodwin had left, Maggie was still all smiles.

"I've seen that girl smile before," she nodded her head at Snow leaving the break room. "but I've never seen her wear the sun like she is now. So whatever you're doing, keep up at it."

Will saw Snow, who nonchalantly waved and smiled, but what had she done to give Maggie that impression? He wasn't Dr. Love, he was Dr. Fuck, and that's exactly what they did... had sex, fucked, screwed, bumped uglies, but it was definitely not making love, because there was no way he was in love with her. Will Halstead had a shattered heart and was incapable of falling in love.

**_Oh, God. What have I done?_ **


	16. Crash

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a devastating blow from Will, Snow contemplates a fateful decision.

**Hi, everybody! Finally updating! Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed: CPDCFDCMED7410, fallingforfiction, M39151, and Ms. Isabella! Be sure to check out their stories, they are quite awesome!**

**You guys have to believe me when I say that it broke my heart writing this chapter, but it unfortunately needed to happen :(.**

**_DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN NOR HAVE ANY AFFILIATIONS WITH YOU'RE SO VAIN. ALL PROPERTIES OWNED BY CARLY SIMON, RESPECTIVELY. I ONLY OWN MY OWN ORIGINAL IDEAS AND CHARACTERS._ **

**_Chapter Sixteen: Crash_ **

**_LATER THAT NIGHT_ **

" _Say Anything_ is one of my all time favorite movies. Guys just don't do things like that anymore." Snow looked over at Will, who was on his phone.

"Did you hear anything I just said, Fry?"

He nodded, his eyes never leaving his phone. "Yeah, of course I did. _Say Anything_. Guys don't do that anymore, got it."

She scoffed. "Is everything alright? You've been sitting here playing Angry Birds for almost an hour."

Snow could tell something was off with Will. For starters, he was late meeting her at Molly's, and when he got there he barely hugged her. She was getting a stressed yet foreboding feeling. Luckily, she had walked over from her place so she treated herself to a couple glasses of Martini and Rossi.

"I'm fine, Jem. Just a lot on my mind is all."

He was stalling for time, but they both knew she was on to him. How much longer could he avoid this?

"Spit it out, Will. You can tell me anything, you know that."

Will heavily sighed, running a hand over his face and through his hair. "You're a sweet girl, but I don't see this working. I think you want more than I could give. I just know I'm going to break your heart."

She gave him a confused look, almost wanting to laugh but could feel the panic rising. "That's awfully presumptuous and pessimistic, don't you think?"

He shook his head, even though she was right. "The women I go for are more fierce and refined, you're this small town girl trying to get adjusted to big city life. Let me put this in _Game of Thrones_ terms so you can better comprehend."

Snow threw her head back and laughed, annoyance joining in with the paranoia. "Don't school me like I'm some inept toddler, Halstead." She reached over, taking the two shots in front of him, the vodka reminding her of gasoline. No wonder she rarely drank, this stuff tastes terribly.

"Just hear me out. My type is more along the lines of Melisandre or Cersei Lannister, even Daenerys Targaryen and Margaery Tyrell. You're stuck in the Arya and Sansa Stark phase, not a full grown woman. We're at different speeds, you're so young and innocent, I'm more hardened. I don't think you'd be able to handle it and it wouldn't be fair to either one of us."

Snow couldn't believe it. With Connor, it had stung but it was more mutual than anything. _This_ would shatter her, it had already started.

"Why?" She asked. "How?"

"I just said how and why."

He didn't want to break up with her, but it was for the best. She'd be stronger from this than if it were to happen down the road when they were more invested in one another.

"But Will, you can't do this. At least I don't want you to. These past few days meant something to me. We opened up to each other, both of us more than we had in years to anybody else, and we made love. I'm sure I shouldn't be saying this right now, but I think my feelings for you have grown stronger."

Snow knew her voice was dangerously close to cracking and that her eyes were wanting to water, classic signs of a heart breaking on the spot.

"Honey, that wasn't making love. It was really amazing sex though. I just think I'm too much man for you and you should go for a boy your own age. Maybe you and Skeet should give long distance a try."

His comments intensified her frustrations "I am sick and tired of people thinking that I'm always a such a nice, sweet girl. Well, I'm not. I've got a wild side also and I proved it to you. No! No, no, no!" She started shaking her head and grabbed her purse, only for it to fall to the floor. "Shit!"

Snow bent down, shoving the contents of her purse back inside when her hand graced Will's for a split second, only for her to shove it away.

"Don't help me, don't touch me, just leave me alone."

"Snow," Will got to his feet. "we need to discuss this like adults. I know you're more mature than this, or am I wrong? Are you really just a little girl?"

"What's to discuss, how I'm an idiot or how you think I'm some naive baby?! I gave up Connor for you, and he was genuinely interested in more than what's underneath my skirt."

"And so am I, it's just that I'm rationalizing things."

"Bullshit! You led me on to get me out of my clothes and into your bed! And your shower! And your couch! I don't know what's worse, the fact that you did it or the fact that I fell for it!"

Without thinking, Snow reached back and smacked Will across the face so hard that he went smashing into bar, knocking over his beer. He looked over, seeing how furious she was. They both were aware of what he was trying to convey, she was the only one with the guts to vocalize it.

"This isn't about me, it's about Natalie, isn't it? I know it's not about Zoe because even though she was a bitch that one time in the closet she's still nice, but you're incapable of going out with a good girl! You're a jerk and you need a bitch, which is why you're going after Bitch Doctor!"

She didn't even care that everybody in the bar was staring, she was too angry to realize her actions.

"Snow..." Herrmann reached out, but Will gave him a shake of his head.

"I'm sick of the bullshit! Everybody's all "Manstead! Manstead! Manstead!" And "LyKe Oh My GoD! I can't wait to see W-ill with Nat-a-lie's baby, oh my god!" She started yelling, imitating everybody's rants in a valley girl voice and making rapid movements with her hands before taking a deep breath.

"Because the two of you are the only couple in all of Chicago, right?" Snow started laughing maniacally before pointing to all the couples she saw. "Matt and Gabby, Chili and Jimmy, Adam and Kim, even you and Cindy, Herrmann! I'm sorry to break the news that none of your amazing relationships matter to anybody else because all anybody in the history of the world cares about is if Gingy Doctor and Bitch Doctor get together!"

Otis tried to walk over. "Snow, I think you need to calm down. It'll be ok."

" ** _I'm fine!_** I'm always fine, even after enduring hell and back I'm still strong! Most people would have jumped off a bridge, but not me!" She focused her attention on Will. "And you're going to make this magical transformation over night from master manipulator playboy to loving surrogate daddy?! Give me a break! You're such a joke, Will Halstead. Date her, don't date her, just make a fucking decision so I can go to sleep at night without thinking that my mind is playing tricks on me about you!"

Zipping her black leather sweatshirt jacket up, Snow turned around and bolted out the door. Will had no choice but to go after her.

"Snow, wait!"

"Stay the hell away from me, Will! Whatever you think you have to say, I don't want to hear it."

"I didn't mean for it to transpire like this. I still like you, I just think we're at different paces."

"I don't want to hear it!" Snow stopped walking and turned around. "I trusted you! With my soul, with my body, I let you do things that I hadn't let any man do in a long time, not even my ex-fiancé!"

She wiped her eyes so she wouldn't cry, hating that she allowed herself so close to breaking. What she didn't know was that it was killing him, not knowing this was going to effect her so deeply.

"Please don't cry, Snow. This was a hard decision for me to make." Will reached out to touch her, but she slapped his hand away.

"Yeah, right! You know why you don't see it working out? It's because you're scared. You're terrified of not being in control, but relationships are unpredictable! Love is unpredictable, and you're too afraid to open up and let me possibly love you with all I have. I kissed you that day because my mind was overtaken with grief regarding my brother and I couldn't take holding in my crush any longer, because for some reason I may never know, I fell for you. That night on the roof, when you promised that you had me and wouldn't let me fall, I took it as something more, something deeper. But I'm not desperate, Will. I'm not going to swallow my pride and beg you to love me. You have to do that on your own. You'll realize what you lost. For your sake, I hope it's not too late."

She was about to turn around when she pulled something out of her purse.

"Oh, do me a favor, take this and shove it up your fire crotch ass, you dickhead!"

Will just barely caught what she threw at him. Looking down at the small blue wrapped box, he read the writing inside the sticky card.

_"To my Fry,_

_Here's a very fitting Funko Pop to add to your collection._

_With Love, your Jem."_

He tore the paper off to reveal a _Futurama_ Fry Funko Pop. She was right, there was a strong resemblance, and it was one of the sweetest gifts he had ever received.

"Damnit." Will mumbled under his breath, looking up to see her walking away. "Snow! Wait! Don't go!"

He chased after her, but knowing he was only a few feet behind made Snow run even faster. All she could concentrate on was running, running off the tipsiness, down the street, across the way until she had finally pulled out her key, unlocked the front door and threw herself inside, where she fell to the floor.

"Jem, I'm sorry! I didn't mean it." Will pounded on the door.

"Leave me the fuck alone or I'll call the police!"

"Snow, please. Let me in! We can discuss this, I take it all back!"

The door swung open, and before Will could process what was happening, Snow threw the snowdrop flowers he got her two nights ago and water out of the vase.

"Stay out of my life and don't ever speak to me again!"

The impact hit him directly in the face, stinging his eyes as the flowers flopped against his jacket.

"Ow! Fuck, my eyes!"

He clutched at his eyes, rubbing them profusely, hearing the door slamming once again and knowing he had royally screwed himself.

Bawling her eyes out until she fell sleep that night, Snow wanted to smack herself for being so stupid and juvenile. How could she have thought that he wouldn't pull this on her? Will Halstead was incapable of human emotions, and that obviously meant caring about another person like she had grown to care for him. Not only was love unpredictable, it was crushing and complicated as well.

 

* * *

 

**_"You walked into the party like you were walking onto a yacht_ **

**_Your hat strategically dipped below one eye_ **

**_Your scarf it was apricot_ **

**_You had one eye in the mirror as you watched yourself gavotte_ **

**_And all the girls dreamed that they'd be Will's partner_ **

**_They'd be Will's partner, and..._ **

**_You're so vain, you probably think this song is about you_ **

**_You're so vain, I'll bet you think this song is about you_ **

**_Don't you? Don't You?"_ **

"Snow?" Sylvie knocked on her roommate's door.

"Come in."

She walked in with Gabby, Chili, Sarah and April behind her. It was dark, the only light being from the TV, the bed strewn with different food wrappers. Sylvie couldn't help but feel some guilt, she should have tried harder to make sure those two never met.

"This song has been stuck on repeat. I should go over to his house and blast it in the streets. That'll show him."

"Look who I brought with me."

Snow opened her eyes, looking over to see the rest of the girls. "Oh, hey. How are you all doing?"

"Fine, but how are _you_ doing?" Sarah asked as she sat down on Snow's desk chair, Chili leaned against the wall while Gabby, April and Sylvie all sat on the bed.

"For somebody who feels like they had their heart ripped out of their chest, stomped on, run over by a Mac truck then thrown off a cliff, I'm great!"

Snow attempted to smile as she sat up, thankful for the room's darkness. For as cute of a girl as she was, right now she looked how she felt: absolute garbage. Mascara stained cheeks, puffy face and tangled hair, she certainly wouldn't be gracing the cover of _Cosmopolitan_ anytime soon.

"We missed you at work today." April said. "I saw you had the day off, so that's a relief, but what about tomorrow?"

"Who knows?" Snow combed her fingers through her hair to appear at least a little presentable. "The music in my mind is a playlist of heartbreak, breakup and female empowerment."

"You just need a new guy, that'll get that ginger off your mind." Chili spoke up. "I mean, he's cute and good looking, kind of, but he's no Ryan Reynolds."

"I'm not that shallow, Chili. My heart was dragged through the ringer. I've had sex before, but this was different. I know he felt it, too, and I thought I was getting through to him but it was all a ruse! This whole time, I thought I was so smart but I'm just like every other girl."

If it had just been a one weekend stand, then she probably wouldn't have been so emotional, but in her mind, it was so much more than that.

Gabby shook her head. "No, you're not. You're young, you're still allowed to make those mistakes."

"I can't keep making them, I have to turn things around and not let my life be ruled by some dick with legs. I think I made a decision, but I'm not sure."

"What is it?"

Snow took a deep breath, not wanting to do this at all and knowing she shouldn't, but maybe this was meant to be.

"I think I should leave Chicago Med."


	17. Already Gone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will starts to regret his decision of breaking up with Snow, and he has a few unfriendly reminders of what he did; Snow receives some encouragement and moves forward

**Hi, everybody! Finally updating again! Only got two hours sleep. Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed: ixistargirl89ixi, M39151, and Ms. Isabella! Be sure to check out their stories, they are quite awesome!**

**Falcon Ruby is an original character of mine played by the broodingly cool James Jagger, son of famed musician Mick Jagger and one of the stars of HBO's groundbreaking period series _Vinyl,_ which is all about the music industry in the 70's! He will definitely be shaking things up in the story. My Pinterest FanFiction board will be open, I'll post a link on my profile as well as cast lists!**

elanamarino/fan-fiction/

**_Chapter Seventeen: Already Gone_ **

"I really screwed up, tremendously. I miss her already. Her adorable face, how her hair smelled, her giggle, everything. She's become so much more to me than the pesky yet quiet pseudo goth nurse with the colored streaks in her hair. Snow was probably my last chance at a real relationship, and what do I do? I deliberately destroy it. Honestly, I doubt I can fix things between us. I really pushed her away."

Will heavily sighed, sprinkling more fish food into the tank.

"At least I've got you, Nemo, the last and only thing I have of Snow Greyson besides the memories. You may not be able to talk back, but you sure are a good listener."

He smiled as the little fish zipped around trying to catch the flakes of food.

"Snow was right, I ought to get you a little girlfriend, it must get awfully lonely in there all by yourself. I'll buy you a Dory tomorrow after work, or maybe a Marlin. Do you swing that way, buddy?"

Will laughed to himself as Nemo flipped his fin back and forth, his smile disappearing when he realized how ridiculous he sounded.

"Jesus Christ, I'm thirty-three years old and I'm pouring my life story out to a gold fish."

He rested his head on the counter, lost in thought. What Snow was unaware of was that his feelings had grown for her as well, but the last time he opened his heart up to a girl, she stomped on it.

**_Snow wouldn't do that, she's a good girl._ **

**_It doesn't matter, they're all capable of doing it._ **

"I'm pretty sure I'm in love with her." He continued speaking aloud. "Falling in love, at least. It might be too early to even tell. At this point, it would be easier going after Natalie again than attempting to get Snow back."

 

* * *

 

Snow folded her arms across her chest, bouncing up and down from the toes to the balls of her feet. She had already been outside the door for five minutes, but knew she couldn't avoid any longer.

She knocked three times, simultaneously turning the knob and opening it.

"Good morning, Ms. Goodwin, Dr. Charles."

Dr. Charles and Ms. Goodwin looked over, smiling politely at her.

"Hello, Snow. How are you doing today?" Ms. Goodwin asked, getting a shrug in reply.

"I'm fine, better than yesterday."

"That's good. Would you like to take a seat?" Dr. Charles pointed to the chair next to him, but Snow shook her head.

"If you two don't mind, I'd prefer to stand right now."

Her nerves were making her jittery and anxious, standing was the only way she could keep herself in check.

"Am I in some kind of trouble?"

Ms. Goodwin shook her head. "No, we just wanted to check in and see how you're doing."

"Snow," Dr. Charles cleared his throat. "Hank Voight told me about the incident the other night at Molly's between you and Dr. Halstead."

"Oh, no." Snow mumbled to herself, bowing her head down as her arms crossed tighter over her chest.

"Are you two engaged in some kind of relationship outside of work?"

She took a deep breath, hoping that it wouldn't have come to this, but knowing it was almost inevitable.

"It was very, very brief. Before you say anything, I solemnly promise that it won't get in the way of work. I want to put in a transfer from Chicago Med."

Ms. Goodwin gave her a puzzled look. "Why would you want to do that? Because of Dr. Halstead?"

Snow went back and forth between shaking her head and nodding. "No... Yeah... No, no. That's not it. I just think a change of scenery would work best for my current depression."

**_They wouldn't understand if I told them the truth._ **

"I know that things may seem distressing right now, but is there any way I could convince you otherwise? You're a terrific nurse, you're doing an outstanding job." Sharon got up and walked around her desk. "Dr. Charles and I didn't meet with you for very long last year, maybe an hour or so, but you have grown and changed from that first time we met, even from your first day working here."

"I have?"

Sharon nodded, putting her hands on Snow's shoulders. "Yes, absolutely. The odds may not have been in your favor, but you've gone above and beyond to defy them. Your hard work and insurmountable strength have gone noticed by and inspired so many around you."

"It's not easy to bounce back after the year you've had, but you have and you can't let anything stop you know. I know it's hard, but you have to keep on truckin'." Dr. Charles added.

"It'll be ok." Sharon gave Snow a hug, which was something of a rarity to do with her staff. "Why don't you take the week off to think about things?"

Her parents had warned her about giving her heart to the wrong person. Why, why hadn't she just gone after Connor? Most likely, he wouldn't have done this. Connor Rhodes was a gentleman whereas Will Halstead was not. The stupid girly part of her brain still missed him and their time together. Had it really been for nothing? No, it wasn't. She had to pick up the pieces and move on. It's what women have had to do long before her and will have to do long after her.

"Can I think about it?"

 

* * *

 

"Will."

The ginger haired doctor looked up to see the dark knight ninja his way into the elevator.

"What is it, Connor?"

He waited until the elevator doors closed before replying. "I'd like to discuss with you what happened at Molly's."

"Why? You weren't there, it doesn't involve you at all."

"Oh, I think it does."

Will was really not in the mood to discuss this, maybe the jerk approach would alienate him.

"Tell me something, Connor, and be honest: are you really defending her honor or are you jealous that I got her into bed before you did? Because I can tell y-"

Will was cut off from his sentence with Connor's fist connections to his cheek, the impact sent him tumbling backwards into the elevator railing.

"It's not about getting into bed, it's about treating her like a lady and with respect, you ass."

Connor folded his arms across his chest, sneering at Will. This asshole didn't deserve her at all, but he had no control over her emotions.

Will didn't even bother replying, he shoved Connor into the other railing. This soon escalated into an aggravated match of grunting and shoving, both men letting out their frustrations over the girl that got away.

 

* * *

Snow popped a piece of gum into her mouth and put her headphones in, waiting for the elevator. The encouragement from Dr. Charles and Ms. Goodwin had been such a relief, for she had been worried she would somehow be fired. Yes, she was still feeling upset over Will, but Sharon was right. Snow did have courage that could get her by and who was he to take it?

She had just put on "Dancing Through Life" from _Wicked_ and was blowing a huge bubble when the elevator dinged. The bubble popped loudly as the doors opened, revealing Will and Connor in a headlock grabbing each other by the hair.

Breathing heavily, they looked over to see her mouth slightly hanging open, her spare ear bud falling out, the lively song playing softly.

Straightening up, she nodded at each of them.

"Mountain, Viper."

The two men separated, giving her confused looks.

"What?" Connor asked.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Will said.

"And you never did."

It was when she casually strolled into the elevator that he realized it was a _Game of Thrones_ reference. Snow Greyson had gotten something of a trial by combat.

Pressing the ER button, Snow stared at her reflection in the elevator doors and began snickering. A few seconds passed and the snickering evolved into light giggles followed by full blown laughing. She laughed so hard that tears sprang to her eyes.

Connor and Will glanced over at each other, trying to figure out why this was happening. Maybe all this stress drove her crazy.

She finally calmed down once the elevator stopped and the doors opened, revealing Natalie on the other side, making Snow snicker once more.

"It just keeps getting better from here."

The pregnant doctor scrunched her eyebrows together, pursing her pillow lips. "I'm sorry?"

The young nurse shook her head. "Nothing. I'll see you around, Natalie."

Snow walked off the elevator and down the hall. Natalie looked at both Will and Connor, the former bolting past them and running off.

"Snow!"

"What was that about?" Natalie asked as she got in the elevator, with Connor shaking his head.

"Believe me, you don't want to know."

"Snow, wait!"

She turned around as she walked into the break room, discarding her gum.

"Yes?" She asked calmly.

"I need to talk to you. The other night was a huge mistake, I regret every word."

Snow shrugged. "Good to know."

How was she being so nonchalant after she had been screaming and crying two nights ago?

"I've called and texted you a thousand times. I was really worried about you."

"I blocked your number."

"Why? Snow, I'm so sorry about what happened. I didn't mean for things to go about in that fashion."

Snow shook her head. "Look, I don't want to discuss this. Actually, there's nothing to discuss because it's exactly like you said. Amazing sex. Now, can we get back to work, please?"

She walked to the door, turning around to see the somber expression he wore. Maybe what he did was finally sinking in, but she couldn't allow herself to care because she would just become aggravated all over again.

 

* * *

 

"Ok, Mr. Greland?"

"Yeah, that's me. I just go by Falcon Ruby, none of that last name stuff." An incredibly thick English accent filled the air, the voice belonging to a tall, skinny man with messy black hair that was icing his eye.

"Hey there, I'm Dr. Halstead. I got your X-Ray's back and you definitely have some cracked ribs."

Falcon groaned, throwing the ice pack down in his lap. "I'm gonna kill that bass player of mine! I told him a thousand times I didn't shag his girl, the next thing I know I'm gett-ing thrown 'cross the bar and smash into a table."

"Sounds like quite the fight."

"Sorry for the delay, I'm here." Snow walked into the treatment room. Will noticed the way Falcon's face lights up the second he sees her.

"Well, 'ello there. And where did you swing in from, little bird?" He smiled a crooked tooth grin.

"Just across the hall, lad. Is that Essex I hear in your accent?"

Snow took in his appearance. In a homely way, this guy was kind of hot, a Sid Vicious knock-off. There was something about the sleeveless muscle tee, ripped jeans with chains and black boots that was seriously sexy.

He nodded. "Sort of, it's Dartford, that boarders Essex."

"Ahh, just like Mick Jagger. You two kind of look alike. I bet you get asked all the time if you've got the moves like Jagger."

"Ha, more than I'd like to admit."

"I love The Rolling Stones. My dad's song for me from the time I was little to now is "She's A Rainbow."."

"Great taste, I like you already. Mine's "Ruby Tuesday", henceforth the name Falcon Ruby. Seriously, did you fly first class from 'eaven, love? Because you're quite angelic. Positively adorable. I'm sure you've got all the 'merican boys lined up 'round the block." Falcon said with a wink of his uninjured dark green eye, making Snow blush and giggle.

"That'll be the day."

Will cleared his throat to interrupt them, this was starting to make him uncomfortable.

"Looks like you need a couple stitches, but Snow will clean you up."

"No problem."

"Are you with that, chap?" Falcon whispered to Will, nodding his head at Snow once her back was turned.

"Uh, no."

Will felt his heart sink to his toes when the rocker wannabe smiled at him. "Hmm, well that's good to know."

"I wouldn't try anything, staff can't date patients." Will looked over at Snow. "When you're done cleaning him up, be sure to grab his discharge papers." He turned back to Falcon. "Take it easy for a couple of days and apply the ointment for your eye."

He zoomed out of there before anything else happened. Why had he been so stupid to dump her? Now that she was single again, the guys would be crawling out of the woodwork. His chances now were slimmer than ever.

**_A FEW HOURS LATER_ **

"Excuse me, miss?"

Maggie looked up from the computer screen to be greeted by a young man with messy black hair and a bit of a long face.

"Yes, may I help you, sir?"

"I was here earlier and treated by a girl with dark hair."

"Oh, do you mean Dr. Manning?"

He shook his head. "No, I'm pre-tay sure she was a nurse because she had on them scrubs with the lit-tle Raggedy Ann and Andy, I think 'er name was Winter or Summer or Autumn, one of the seasons?"

"Falcon?"

They glanced over to see Snow walking out from one of the treatment rooms, hearing his accent in the hallway had coincided perfectly with her finishing up on a patient.

"Snow! That was the name!" He walked over, flashing his crooked grin once more, his leather jacket providing the perfect rocker touch. "Hi there."

"Hi, what are you doing here? Did you forget something?"

"'No. Um, well..." Falcon scratched the back of his head, nervously laughing. "I'm not really good at this kind of thing, I've usually got the chicks flocking to me."

"Oh." Snow shrugged.

**_Another playboy, just what I need._ **

"Well, good for you."

"Sorry, that was pretty rude. Honestly, I've had "She's A Rainbow" stuck in my head since I left this place. I remembered I had this in my collection and wanted you to have it."

He pulled something out from behind his back and gave it to her. She looked down to see the LP Vinyl of _Their Satanic Majesties Request_ , which was an album of The Rolling Stones from 1967.

"Wow, this is the album it's on!"

Falcon nodded. "Yep, first edition vinyl as well."

Snow smiled, carefully running her hand across the vibrant cover. "This is very thoughtful, thank you very much."

Will was walking from around the corner to drop some papers off when he saw Snow talking to Falcon, being watched by Maggie, Ethan and Natalie.

**_Fuck, what the hell is this moron doing here?_ **

Falcon shoved his hands in his pockets. "So, do you want to go out with me?"

She chuckled, taken by surprise, her face turning red, knowing she was being watched. "Oh, well-"

"I'm not Prince Charming, some people may call me a degenerate, but I can show you a fun time. My band Joint Terrorism is playing tonight, you should come with me, get a bit more into the Chicago underground rock scene."

"Joint Terrorism? That's a peculiar name."

"Yeah, we've considered changing it because the NSA is constantly up our assholes. So, what do you say? You in or you out?"

Snow hesitated. Was it really the best thing to dive back into something after how it ended so disastrously with Will? Then again, didn't she deserve to let loose a bit? Besides, this guy wasn't that bad to look at.

She nodded. "What the hell? Yeah, I'm in. Let's do this." She grabbed a pen off the counter, taking his hand and writing down her number. "I'm off at 5:30, so give me a call and I'll give you my address to pick me up."

"Bitchen, I'll pick you up later." Falcon leaned in and have her a three second peck on the lips. Ethan raised an eyebrow, Natalie covered her mouth to hide her laughter, Maggie and Will blinked in shock.

He pulled away with a wink and a smile. "Until then."

Snow's face was practically mauve as she gave him a finger wave, her other fingers on her lips. "B-bye." She shook her head with a smile once he left before going on her merrily way, actually excited for the first time in days.

April walked up to the task and nodded. "Looks like somebody got back on the horse again. Not the way I would have gone but good for her."

Maggie looked over to see Will still baffled as to what the hell just happened.

"First it's the pretty boy, now it's the rockstar. You've got some tough competition, Will."

"Yeah, I know." He looked down in despondency.

**_You have nobody to blame but yourself, you and your guarded heart._ **


	18. Far Beyond

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will and Natalie go out to dinner, where she makes a spontaneous suggestion; Following a run in with Snow and Falcon, Natalie sees right through Will; Snow has a surprise announcement that will rock things up for the Gaffney staff.

**Hi, everybody! I'm proud to say I am now a licensed driver! Third time really was a charm! :D Interesting reaction to Falcon! I can't wait to see what you all think about him after this chapter! Sorry if this chapter is a bit short, I'm trying to catch up with _Checkered Hearts!_ Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed: ixistargirl89ixi, M39151, and Ms. Isabella! Be sure to check out their stories, they are quite awesome!**

**_Chapter Eighteen: Far Beyond_ **

**_A WEEK LATER_ **

"Thanks for taking me out tonight. I had such a oyster craving it wasn't even funny."

Will shrugged. "No problem. Things have been kind of strained lately, I wanted to clear the air."

He watched Natalie happily munching away at GT Fish and Oyster, one of the most popular seafood restaurants in Chicago, famous for their oyster po-boy sliders and simple yet inviting atmosphere. Honestly, he didn't think she'd even agree to go for dinner, but was a bit relieved that she had.

"Yeah, what happened, Will?"

He heavily sighed, twisting a cold Budweiser in his hand. "What can I say? Things got weird."

**_They got weird because I fell for the right girl and screwed it up intentionally and immensely._ **

She shrugged. "You were going through a phase, that's all. I mean, who was seriously going to buy Mr. Straight Laced with Punky Brewster? Not me."

"Please don't talk about her. It's the last thing I want to discuss."

**_Yet it's the only thing I can think about. I wonder what she's doing right now..._ **

Natalie reached over, putting her hand on his free wrist. She was thrilled that he was single again, Snow was such a bad fit for him. So young and immature, Snow hadn't lived through anything that she and Will had.

Will looked up at her, smiling with her eyes. "I care about you, Will. A lot. I know it was wrong of me to turn you in with Sharon, but I had to."

"Natalie..."

She shook her head. "Let's not discuss it further, it's in the past. We deserve a fresh start, all of us. That and I heard Mr. Baker dropped the lawsuit, so it's like whatever happened is non-existent now."

He nodded. "Sure. Yeah, fresh start, you got it."

Although, he wasn't really feeling it. Why the sudden interest?

"'Mmhmm. So why don't we get out of here and get better acquainted in a more comfortable atmosphere? I think we owe it to each other after all this time."

 

* * *

 

Will stood outside the restaurant, waiting for Natalie, who had to use the restroom for the millionth time that night, or so it seemed. It was moments like this he was grateful for being a man.

For as confident as he was, is this the right thing to be doing? She clearly wanted this to happen, she had said as much with her words as she did with her foot under the table. Could it mean more or was he overthinking things? Maybe this wouldn't even happen, pregnancy hormones and all.

"Thanks for this new leather jacket, it was getting kind of cold."

"You're welcome, but if we're being honest, I think I prefer you with more clothes off, baby."

A surprised giggle filled the air. "Jeez, scoundrel much?"

"What? All I'm saying is you're just as hot without your clothes as you are in them."

"Thanks, I suppose."

"Thanks I suppose? Come hither, you."

Will looked over to see a young couple holding hands before stopping in the middle of the sidewalk and exchanging in a steamy French kiss, his hands moving from her hips to her ass, her's on his shoulders, leaning into his touch. When he looked closer, he couldn't believe it, the sight now making his stomach turn.

"Snow? Is that you?"

The couple broke their kiss and glanced at Will. Upon seeing who it was, Snow took a full step back, giving him a clear view of her outfit.

She was wearing a black leather midriff baring bustier, skin tight ripped jeans with a colorful array of sequins going from the knee down, and studded black chunky platform heels. Her hair was straightened and worn half up in something of a faux hawk style, smokey eye makeup, black lace fingerless gloves and a bunch of jewelry, topping the outfit off with a red rhinestoned heart belly button ring that showed off her perfectly taut tummy. Quite frankly, she looked like a smoking hot rocker babe, he couldn't help but get turned on.

"Oh, Will... Hi." Snow bravely walked over, not knowing that with every strut she made had him regretting things a little bit more. She had to remain confident and cool, no sweat off her back.

"What are you doing here?" He asked.

Before she could answer, Falcon walked up with a smile, raising his hand up as his left arm wrapped around Snow's neck. "Ay' Gin-gah Spice! Great to see ya again."

Will hesitated but high fived him anyway, that nickname bringing back uncomfortable memories. "Hi, how are you feeling? Your cut is looking better."

Up close, he definitely could have passed for a cousin of Skeet's, maybe even his brother. Perhaps Snow took his advice to heart about them getting back together and that's why she was with him, a Chicago version of him.

"Thanks, it's certainly gott-en bet-tah thanks to this beauty." Falcon leaned in and started kissing Snow's neck, making her laugh.

"Falcon! You know how ticklish I am!"

Only two weeks ago she was saying that to Will, in his bedroom, in his house...

He stopped and looked over at Will. "And I owe it all t'ya, man."

Just hearing that made Will tense up. He already knew this was coming. Snow had blocked him on any social media, but not Jay, whom he had lurking on her profile. The brothers had seen all the pictures posted of the two of them together and the relationship status update, not to mention Will overheard Snow telling April how Falcon was out of this world in bed.

This was all going a bit too fast, they both needed to slow down. It had taken Will and Snow two months to get to a sexual level, but she drops her clothes for this schmuck overnight?! Why was she doing this? What would her parents think?

Snow cleared her throat. While she was still angry at Will, it wasn't doing wonders for her anxiety how uncomfortable he was.

"Falcon's band Joint Terrorism just finished up at Lincoln Hall."

"And had an incredible gig, mate! Who knew that this one had a mad set of pipes on her?" Falcon smacked Snow on the behind, making her titter, but Will could tell she was embarrassed.

"You sing?"

She nodded. "Sometimes, and I play guitar. My dad taught me when I was little. Anyways, we were heading out for a drink afterwards. Just the two of us."

"You don't drink, Snow."

He wanted to bring up about how she also didn't dress like a sexy groupie, either, but she appeared almost unfazed.

"Like I said, there's a lot you don't know about me."

"Ok, I'm ready."

"Natalie?" Snow blinked, feeling her knees wanting to buckle as her arm linked through Will's. It was already bad enough running into Will with what she was wearing, but now he was with her pseudo arch-nemesis?!

"Wow." Snow scoffed, looking at Will, who appeared to be embarrassed. "No grass grows under those feet, huh, Halstead?"

"What are you wearing?" Natalie asked, scrunching up her face. "You look like you raided Ke$ha's closet."

Snow ignored her snippy remark, even off the clock she was still unbearable. "Just letting my hair down for the evening."

"Snow-" Will trailed off, knowing how this looked.

She shook her head, cdesperately trying to divert reality. "I don't think you two have met. This is my new boyfriend, Falcon Ruby. Falcon, Dr. Manning and I work together at Gaffney."

"Hi, Falcon." Natalie smiled as they shook hands. "That's some name."

"Hi, yeah." Falcon turned to his girlfriend. "Ain't she the one you call "Bitch Doctor", love?"

Natalie raised an eyebrow and smirked, staring at Snow. "Bitch Doctor, really?"

"Falcon!" Snow hissed under her breath, completely mortified. This was going from bad to worse in a matter of mere seconds, especially when he started laughing.

"Yeah! If we were back in the UK she'd be called C-"

"Alright, I think that's about enough out of you, chappie. Why don't you go shoot up? I saw the tract marks on your arms yesterday."

Will had just about had it with this snot nosed punk. He was arrogant, cocky, stubborn, pig headed... Come to think of it, with the exception of being British, uneducated and a few years younger, Falcon was pretty much Will.

Falcon's smile disappeared. "And what the 'ell is that 'pposed to mean, Chuckie? Don't give me lip because you couldn't keep the girl long enough and I could. I know all about you."

"Whatever, man. You try anything with her, I'll get your hands on you myself."

"Yeah? How about I try something with you instead?"

Falcon took a step forward, only for Snow to get in between.

"Enough! Let's just get out of here, now I have a headache." She turned back to Will and Natalie, grabbing Falcon's hand. "I'll see you both tomorrow."

Snow dragged Falcon off, knowing her eyes were stinging. Humiliation and confusion were on her mind, how could he be with her?! Snow was also aggravated at Falcon. Maybe being with him wasn't the smartest decision she had made...

Will and Natalie watched them walk away until they got on the back of a motorcycle and sped off into the night. She couldn't help but notice the bothersome look on his face.

"You ok?"

"Huh?" He shook his head reminding himself of where his focus needed to be. "Yeah, I'm fine. Ready to go?"

Will reached out for her hand but Natalie took a step back, looking slightly annoyed. "I should have seen it sooner."

"Seen what sooner?"

You're still not over her."

"Who, Snow?" Will feigned laughter. "You're crazy, Nat. What's there to be over or not over? It was a two night stand, it's not like I've never had them before."

"No, Will. People don't get puppy dog eyes and start fights over girls they only have two night stands with." She shook her head, wishing it weren't like this. "It looks like you have some things to figure out. I'll see you tomorrow at work." Natalie whistled loudly, signaling a taxi.

"Natalie, wait!" He started after her. "I'll drive you back to work so you can get your car. Let me at least do that."

She shook her head, getting into the cab. "No, it's fine. Thanks, Will. I just want to be alone right now."

"Damn it!" Will grumbled under his breath as he watched the cab driving away. Talk about a double whammy. Things weren't working out no matter what direction he turned in.

* * *

 

"Good morning, Maggie." Will said as he walked into the hospital the next morning.

"Morning, Dr. Halstead." She glanced up at him briefly but ended up doing a double take. "Good lord! What have you been through?!"

He shrugged, not knowing how pale his skin was or how dark the circles under his eyes were, or the redness of his actual eyes. If she wasn't mistaken, he appeared to be a bit thinner as well.

"It's nothing. Allergies, I'm fine."

Except both of them knew it wasn't allergies, it was heartache and anguish over what was one of the biggest regrets of his life, if not the biggest.

They glanced over when a loud, obnoxious motor revved up and stopped in front of the emergency entrance. Snow got off the back of it, a huge smile visible when she took her helmet off before leaning in and kissing Falcon. He grabbed her by the back of the head with one hand, deepening the kiss. Maggie saw Will out of the corner of her eye, seeing the agony he wore as visibly as his red scrubs.

"I hate to say I told you so, but I did. You do realize you screwed this one up, right?"

He shook his head in shame, unable to look at the girl he let slip away with a guy that clearly made her happy. "Please, Maggie. If you love me, don't remind me."

His heart leapt out of his chest when Snow walked into the E.R., her hair pulled back in a ponytail, showcasing her spectacular grey eyes. God, she was a beauty. To his surprise, her smile didn't disappear when they made eye contact for the first time in almost two weeks.

"Good morning, good morning, everyone." She looked around, seeing everybody that mattered was there. "I'm so glad you're all here, there's something quite important I want to address."

Dr. Charles and Ms. Goodwin looked over from the other side of the desk, Connor and Ethan were coming out of a treatment room, Natalie made her way over to Will while April and Sarah were off to the side. For a moment Will thought it was going to be about him. If it was, he deserved the humiliation, especially after what went down at Molly's.

Snow took a deep breath, her heart beat increasing. "As you all know, I've had my fair share of ups and downs since starting here, but I definitely think I've handled it with grace and ease. Like the dying phoenix, I have risen up from the ashes and spread my wings. Although, after some recent events and much thought, I think it's time I went flying in a different direction."

Will and Connor both felt their hearts stopping when Snow lifted her left hand up, revealing a large stainless steel two headed skull ring, one of the skulls in black with steel flowers, her face in a huge smile on her face.

"I'm engaged!"


	19. Burn on You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snow reveals many surprises; An enraged Natalie calls Snow out, who retaliates, leading to an unexpected event; Will makes an attempt; Snow breaks her facade.

**Hi, everybody! Sorry for the delay, I've been driving around in my brand new car! I still can't believe it! It's a 2016 Jeep Latitude that I've named "Cher'Tude" after Cher in Clueless! I hope that everybody isn't too upset with Snow after this chapter! Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed: Chloe-West17031999, ixistargirl89ixi, M39151, Ms. Isabella and TheIrishShipperholic! Be sure to check out their stories, they are quite awesome!**

**_Chapter Nineteen: Burn on You_ **

Everybody was silent, the only sounds were the machines in the other treatment rooms, Snow's smile never faltering. Maggie was the first to speak.

"I'm sorry? Come again?"

Snow nodded. "Yes, I'm engaged! Falcon proposed last night, it was a total surprise. This isn't the real ring, it's one of his. We're getting married next week before we leave for California, where he's getting me an exact replica of the black diamond skull engagement ring that deadmau5 gave Kat Von D!"

"You're leaving?" Dr. Charles asked, to which she nodded, nobody noticing Connor had slipped away.

"Yes!" She turned to Sharon. "I'm sorry if this is a little late for my two weeks notice, but we had to jump at the contract. Falcon made me the lead singer of his band! This is the most exciting thing that's ever happen to me!" Snow giggled, looking truly happy, which had Will's stomach in knots. Engaged? Moving? A record contract? It was all too much.

"Snow," Ethan walked up, gently grasping her shoulders with his strong hands. "are you sure about this? I'm your best friend here and I'm telling you this seems incredibly rushed." The plucky nurse and lieutenant commander, both naturally shy, somehow managed to bond over their love for Tina Fey, video games and Jack Black movies. He knew that she would regret this and didn't want to see her get hurt, but all Snow did was keep on smiling.

"Yes, I'm sure, Ethan. I'm really happy with Falcon. He loves me and I love him so much. Life is too short to not be with my true love."

"It's only been a week. What about Chicago? What about your family in Michigan?" April stepped forward. "You're going to leave them and all of us behind?"

Sarah nodded. "Leaf will be crushed. He's already having a hard time with you being a few hours away in another state, but across the country?"

"When Joint Terrorism makes it big like the executive said we're going to, I plan to buy my family a huge house, move them in, and buy you all tickets to come see us! I mean," Snow pulled out her phone and held it up once the video was cued. "Falcon told me that I was born to tear up a stage, his younger brother Emerson agrees also."

It was obviously from last night, she was wearing the same outfit Will and Natalie saw her in, but she had a black Fender Stratocaster, holding onto the microphone stand as she sang "Decode" by Paramore with Falcon playing next to her and the rest of the band behind them. She really was good, it was Falcon that looked like a moron bopping around, but they both killed it on their instruments.

"This executive is the same one that discovered 5 Seconds of Summer, I think he knows what he's talking about. He says we're going to be the next Paramore! There's a photo shoot and recording session scheduled and everything!"

Before Will could open his mouth, Natalie beat him to punch, a semi-contrived smile on her face.

"Snow! That's wonderful! Congratulations! Sorry everybody else isn't on the band wagon, but I think it's great!"

She threw her arms around Snow in a hug, who was unsure of how to respond but found herself reciprocating anyway.

"Uh, thanks!"

One by one, everybody went back to what they were doing, clearly shocked by the news.

"Come on, tell me all about your plans!" Natalie linked arms with Snow, leading her down the hall. "You'll be a beautiful bride, I'm sure."

"Thank you, I actually-"

Natalie cut her off once they were alone. "You really think I care about your shotgun wedding to Mick Jagger Jr? I don't. This is about you and me right now." She folded her arms across her chest, giving Snow quite the glare.

"You obviously don't like me and I shouldn't be concerned at all, you're just an immature brat, but for some reason I'm rather perturbed. I didn't want to believe what I heard at Molly's regarding your little outburst, but I knew when Falcon called me "Bitch Doctor" that it was unfortunately true. Why don't you like me?" She kept talking before Snow could reply.

"You have ruined things between me and Will! I was taking my time getting over Jeff, then you came along with your juvenile streaked hair and cute little "Fry" nickname. Now he looks at you the same way he used to look at me, even though you're with Falcon. Why did you have to take an interest in him? You were better off with Connor. Forget that, even he is too good for you. Snow, you and Falcon belong together because he's just as much of an imbecile as you are and I hope you have a long and happy marriage.

Snow was taken aback, having never expected this from Natalie. Sure, she was snippy, but they had always been cordial. Right now, Snow was infuriated. Natalie had a right to be offended with Falcon's comment, but to bring it up now at their place of work was just inappropriate. She should know better, plus her last comment was dripping in sarcasm.

"Don't give me that spiel about Will. I have Falcon, who would never hurt me, at least not like Will did. If you want him, he's free game now. If you feel better about yourself by walking all over people and calling me an immature brat, go ahead, but I'm telling you right now that you're wrong. I've been through more in my little life than you could ever imagine to go through in yours. I'm not just a she-wolf, I'm leader of the pack. What are you? You're _nothing_ , at least not to me."

Snow took a deep breath in between her rant, Natalie's facial expression seemed to have softened some from anger to a bit surprised as she was being cornered. Even Snow was speechless on how she could act like this, but enough was enough. It was about damn time that Natalie Manning was knocked off her high horse.

"There's no denying that you're a good doctor, and I respect you for it, but that's about all I respect you for. You're one of the coldest and most condescending people I've ever met. Whether or not you were always like this I don't know and I don't care. I gave you the benefit of the doubt and tried to get to know you better, but I was right. You're a bitch, Natalie. I wouldn't cross the street to piss on you if you were on fire." Snow cleared her throat, her sneer still in tact. "I'm not going to be here much longer and I'm already not one of your nurses, so I think we should keep our distance."

A squelching sound came out of nowhere, with both girls looking down to see that Natalie's water had broken, making Snow step back and gasp while Natalie was absolutely calm.

* * *

After Natalie's water had broken, the hospital staff had been all in a tizzy. One would have thought it was Princess Charlotte being born, but in a way this was Gaffney's royal baby.

Snow was in the storage closet, trying to compose herself while counting out gloves and tongue dispensers. Had it technically been her fault? She had just insulted Natalie and then her water broke. Never mind leaving, she'd probably be fired now.

"I knew you'd be in here."

Snow turned around to see Will walk through, the last person she wanted to see but remained professional. Perhaps he meant that statement as a coincidence.

"Yes? Did you need something?"

He nodded, locking the door behind him. There had to be a way to get through to her, this wasn't who she really was.

"I came here to talk to you. You're making a big mistake."

She shook her head. "I think you're one to talk, Will. There's nothing left to discuss with you. So could you please leave me alone?" Snow turned her back to him, going through the gloves again. More than anything, she wanted him to leave, but another part of her may have wanted more.

"How could you lie to yourself that you're in love with this punk wannabe when you're so clearly in love with me?"

"Ha, give me a break!" Snow laughed and rolled her eyes, turning to face him. "I'd have to have had a lobotomy to be in love with you. That ship has sailed, honey. I gave you my heart and you decided to put an arrow through it. Not gonna happen again. You clearly think I'm stupider than I look."

Will shook his head. "I don't think you're stupid at all, but I will if you run off with your rockstar prince. I can see how it'll go down now, you guys aren't going to get married or make it big, you never will. You'll end up living in some rundown shack in the bad part of town, where Falcon will probably cheat on you immediately and turn your whole life upside down. Why throw away all the hard work of the foundation you just laid?"

A very slim part of Snow had a feeling he was right, but there was no way in hell that she would let him win.

"You're crazy. Falcon believes in me and us as a couple. He brings out my true self that I've been suppressing most likely my whole life. Why stay here when I can be over two thousand-"

She was cut off with Will leaned in and kissed her with the same fervency as he did when they were in his bedroom, grabbing her hips and pushing her into the wall. Snow meant to shove him off but she pulled him in further, their kissing intensified as his hands moved from her hips to her breasts, giving them a gentle squeeze before cupping her face, their tongues deepening down the other's throat.

She felt weightless as he lifted her off the ground and had her on the other side of the closet, her fingers gripping his hair with such intensity, her knee slightly stroking his quite visible erection. Neither one of them wanted this to stop, only for things to further progress, the need for physical intimacy at an all time high, "Crazy on You" by Heart playing full blast in her mind, the two of them kissing as if it were truly the last kiss. It was then that Snow decided it had to be and separated herself.

"What are you doing?!" She jumped out of his arms, staring at him. "What did I just do? I have a fiancé! I cheated on him! You made me a cheater!"

"You're not over me or else you wouldn't have waited to push me off." He grabbed both of her hands, putting them near his chest. "I can't handle what I did to you. I am so truly sorry and I have been regretting it since that night at Molly's." His voice cracked, worrying he would cry. At this point, his levels of need and want for Snow were evened. That's just what love did, or close to love. "Please, Jem. We have something real here. Give me another chance. I have to make it up to you."

She shook her head, throwing her hands down. "No, there is no second chance. You've made it very clear who you want. You can't be with me or anybody because you're too hung up, and that is where your future lies." Snow didn't want to tell him that she had overheard Ms. Goodwin scolding Will about how somebody can't move on from something unless they are truly ready, and they all knew what she meant.

"Then why are you crying?" It hurt him to see her like this and it was all his fault. He tried to put his hand on her face but she shrugged him off, feeling embarrassed that her eyes had watered.

"Screw you! I'm not crying! I don't love you, I can't stand you! The day I leave this hospital will be the best day of my life because I won't ever have to see your stupid face again!" Snow kept yelling, having to pinch both arms behind her back to prevent tears from falling. She had been through too much to endure this charade again. "We were never meant to be together, we were meant for different people. Falcon loves me and he's my destiny, just like Natalie is yours. Go to her, Will. Go start your new life and be happy. She can give you more than I ever would have wanted to."

Will didn't even get to reply as Snow unlocked the door and pushed him out of it, making him walk backwards so he wouldn't fall. He was about to go back in when Maggie called out to him. Snow crouched on her knees, watching through the door window as Maggie handed off a hospital gown clad Natalie to Will, the two of them walking down the hall.

Overhearing Ms. Goodwin's words earlier sent Snow in a lurch, she couldn't believe it. She was under the assumption that Will had moved on from Natalie, and that he was doing it with her, but apparently not. It's why he dumped her, it's why Bitch Doctor's strolling around the hospital with her head on his shoulder like she won the war.

 _Who do I really love?_ Snow thought to herself. _I can't be in love with him. There is no bigger waste than chasing after somebody that is clearly attached elsewhere._

She couldn't even process her thoughts, her heart rate sped up and her breath shortened, she started seeing triple of everything and broke out in a sweat. This was still hurting even though she desperately didn't want it to. Locking the door once again Snow fully dropped, letting her tears fall in sync with her knees as she shook uncontrollably. She had been through so much in her life, but she had never experienced a broken heart.

Snow was unaware of the door opening until a concerned voice called her name, not having realized how faulty the lock was. She looked up to see Dr. Downey standing in the doorway and was instantly mortified.

"Snow, what's wrong?!"

All she could do was shake her head and look down on the ground crying, teardrops falling on her dainty hands. "No, no! I'm fine! Don't worry about me!"

Dr. Downey got down to her level, pulling something off a shelf. "Snow, you have to get your breathing under control, you're having an anxiety attack. Breath into this." He handed her a paper bag and rubbed her back, but she was still hysterical. "Hon, you've gotta stop crying." He helped sit her up. "Snow, look at me."

She finally looked up, breathing rapidly into the bag to the point where it almost burst.

"You're breathing too fast, you gotta take three deep breaths."

Snow choked out a last sob before forcing herself to breathe correctly into the bag. Dr. Downey smiled, patting her on the shoulder.

"There, atta girl. You've got this."


	20. You're Not Alone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snow has a heart-to-heart with Dr. Downey and decides the fate of her relationship with Falcon.

**Hi, everybody! Sorry for the delay again, I'm trying to sort out my transcripts and return back to school! I can't add my classes until the 25th, which has me worried considering the class I need is filling up! Falcon's neighbor is based off of Jamie Vine, James' Jagger's love interest in _Vinyl,_ played by Juno Temple. I can't believe it's not coming back for Season 2! Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed: Chloe-West17031999, ixistargirl89ixi, M39151, Ms. Isabella and TheIrishShipperholic! Be sure to check out their stories, they are quite awesome!**

**_Chapter Twenty: You're Not Alone_ **

"I've had panic attacks before, I get them more than I'd like to admit, but not like this. Not after the diagnosis or the treatments or the surgery, when I dumped Skeet, worse than when Leaf fell out of the tree. I actually felt like The Grim Reaper was clutching my heart."

Snow dabbed her eyes before sipping her beverage. After Dr. Downey helped get her breathing under control, he had invited her to talk, and now they were in his office drinking tea. It was dark blue with various pictures of beaches and hibiscus flowers, it even smelled like pineapples and coconuts.

"This all sounds so ridiculous, I'm sure. I went from having two guys interested in me to none at all, because I took a gamble and gave my heart to the wrong one. Now they're both with bitches, Bitch Doctor and Bitch Surgeon." She looked up at Dr. Downey, who had an amused face, which was when she remembered her manners. "Whoops, excuse my language. Uh, I meant... Um, well..."

He laughed and shook his head. "Don't worry about it, I get the point and you're all good. I take it you still have feelings for Dr. Halstead judging by your reaction. Do you think that you jumped into things with Falcon too quickly in order to get over him?"

She hesitated, wanting to say no but knew that she'd be lying, not only to herself but to Dr. Downey as well. "Yes, I do. I mean, what am I thinking? Falcon is a nice guy, a bit crass though, not to mention sexy and talented, but I hardly know him. I shouldn't be going through with this, should I? And what I did to Connor, I'm truly a horrific person."

Dr. Downey shook his head. "It's only up to you to decide, Rainbow Brite. It won't be easy, but I believe in you that you'll make the right choice. We are only as good as the choices we make, but the heart doesn't lie."

Snow nodded. "That's true."

"To be honest, and I'm sure I shouldn't be telling you this, but Vince is in shock. He told me that the tattoos on Falcon were pretty macabre."

Snow's parents hadn't met Falcon in person, only on FaceTime, and their silence afterwards made their disapproval quite evident.

Snow gave him a puzzled look. "You know my dad on a first name basis?"

"Mmhmm. We've gotten pretty friendly since his visit a couple weeks ago. He convinced me to join his fantasy football league. Great man, your mother is pretty swell also."

"They're terrific people. It's kind of comforting to know you two talk. How many tabs does he have on me?"

Naturally, her parents were overprotective, but more so since moving to Chicago.

"Not too many, but it's not a problem for me. If I had any children of mine, I'd be the same I'm sure. It may be invasive but it shows we care."

It was always one of his biggest regrets, not having children. Connor was the closest thing he had, and he could see himself forming a better friendship with Snow as well.

"Tell me, how did you react when you first received your diagnosis?" Dr. Downey rested his elbow on the arm of his chair, his fingers on the side of his head.

She took a deep breath, knowing that Dr. Downey could be trusted with her immense secret, especially since he had been there himself.

"I thought it was some kind of rouse, that at any moment it would turn out to be a prank, but it wasn't. We're still baffled as to how it came about, one of those freak occurrences. My mom was hysterical and my dad became practically catatonic. They say that something like this is pretty rare and unlikely, I just happened to fall into that category. It's untimely luck. I didn't cry though. Everybody else did, but not me, not once. I've often wondered why, but it just didn't happen."

"I remember when I found out. Everything was pretty somber for a while, the treatments are a real buzzkill."

"Tell me about it. All the prodding and pinning, at least I got Popsicles and all the Netflix I could binge watch."

They shared a brief laugh, adding to the levity.

"You watch a lot of TV, huh?"

Snow shrugged. "Eh, I do and I don't. I was pretty depressed for a while so I took advantage of all the streaming services, but I'm actually a huge bookworm."

"That's good. As far as our experiences go, think of it like a massive sand art mandala. Once you're finished, you wipe it clean but it was still memorable."

"Where have I heard that before...?" Snow snapped her fingers, her eyes widening in excitement. " _Orange is the New Black_!"

Dr. Downey nodded with a smile. "I'll admit, the show is my guilty pleasure."

"Mine, too. I knew I'd like you, Dr. Downey."

Snow smiled, their talk had definitely calmed her and made her see things clearly.

"I like you, too, Snow. You're a great girl and I know you'll be able to figure it all out. In the mean time," Dr. Downey opened a lower desk drawer and pulled out a red book, handing it to her. "why don't you take this for some inspiration?"

Snow looked down on the book. "I heard about this! They're making a movie with Emilia Clarke and Sam Claflin. Stars from two of the biggest franchises of all time? Box office gold. Not to mention Sam Claflin is so adorable!" She squealed before remembering where she was. "Whoops, sorry, again. He's a very attractive young man. Falcon's brother Emerson looks like him a bit."

Dr. Downey once again found her charming. "Don't apologize for being yourself. The book is about a successful young man whose life comes to a drastic halt after a paralyzingly accident. Ironically enough, his name is Will."

Snow shrugged. "It's a pretty common name, not to mention an actual word, so I can't stop the world every time I hear it."

"That's true. Anyways, he learns to love and be happy again even though he isn't who he used to be. I know you can, also. You have the sparkle, don't let anybody dull the shine."

 

"There's my baby chick!"

Falcon had a huge smile on his face when he opened the door to see his fiancé.

"Hi, Falcon."

"How are ya, gorgeous?"

He pulled Snow inside, oblivious to the tension she wore, and opted to kiss her instead.

"I'm alright."

"I was thinking about you, but why didn't you just have me pick you up from the hospital?" He asked, leading her by the hand into his bedroom. "It wouldn't 'ave been a problem."

Falcon lived in a studio loft downtown with his younger brother Emerson, which was quite spacious but seemed incredibly cramped with boxes. Like Snow, they had only moved to Chicago a few months ago. Unlike her, they had never officially unpacked.

"Oh, it's fine, the walk wasn't too bad."

Truthful, it helped clear her head. She was relieved that with all the chaos at the hospital following Natalie's delivery that she was able to ask for the rest of the day off per Dr. Downey's insistence. He had made a lot of valid points that she pondered on the way over to Falcon's.

"Either way, I'm glad you're here, babe."

Falcon turned around with his crooked tooth grinned and kissed her, his hands on her face. Every time they kissed, she'd lose herself and become immersed in the rock n' roll fantasy, the taste of whiskey and cigarettes on his breath left her mildly intoxicated. With Falcon, he could give a world she dreamed of, he was talented, reckless and impulsive, but hadn't she been down this road before with Skeet?

Will was a safe choice, but how safe was he? He had already broken her heart once before, but she had a sinking feeling that maybe he was right and Falcon would also.

Snow broke the kiss once Falcon's hands were on her breasts. "Mmm, wait, Falcon..." She tried to pry his hands off but he kept massaging, kissing under her ear.

"What, love? I can't give my girls a proper hello?"

He pulled away, looking down with that smile. "When we get to California, I'm going to have to be extra careful that somebody doesn't try to steal you away, you're so fuc-king hot." His hands were now on the sides of her pants. "I'm going to make love to you on every square inch of our mansion, sexy girl. Why don't we get a head start now and get you out of these clothes?"

"Falcon, wait." Snow took a step back. "I really need to talk to you."

His smile disappeared at the sound of those words. "Oh, bollocks. This can't be good."

She shook her head. "I'm afraid it's not. Falcon, I'm sorry but I can't come with you to California. It's killing me to do this, but I have to do what's best for myself, for my future." Snow slid the ring off her finger and put it back on Falcon's. "I care about you so much, but I'm just not right for this."

He didn't say anything at first, looking incredibly despondent, until his face twisted up in a sneer.

"I get it now. This is about that ginger wanker, ain't it?"

Before she could reply, Falcon nearly exploded, hauling boxes across the room and throwing things off shelves and counters all the while screaming obscenities. This had Snow particularly frightened, especially when he put his first through the glass window.

"Argh, fuck!" He screamed as blood trickled down his hand.

"Falcon!"

She ran over to him to see his hand but he flung her away.

"Don't touch me!"

"Jesus Christ, this is your guitar hand! Are you stupid?! We need to run it under water now."

Snow dragged him over to the sink, immediately turning on the water, where Falcon groaned in pain. Finally, after he stopped screaming and let Snow treat his hand, he calmed down.

"We make beautiful music together! What the fuck does Dr. Firecrotch have that I don't? I can make you happy, Snow. I thought I did."

When she looked up, Snow saw he had tears in his eyes, but she wasn't sure if it was from her or the pain in his hand.

"It's not about Will, Falcon. We rushed into this, you know that. You mean a lot to me but I don't think we should be making such huge commitments in the minute amount of time we spent together. Do you even love me or do you think you love me?"

"Of course I love you! You were going to be the Yoko to my John or the Jerry Hall to my Mick."

Snow raised an eyebrow. "Come on, now. Let's be truthful."

He heavily sighed, taking her other hand. "I don't know. Is that bad?"

She shook her head. "No, it's honest."

"I do like you a lot. You're quite kind and sexy and can really rock a stage. You make me think of golden retrievers and white picket fences."

"I like you a lot, too, and I'm glad I met you. Falcon, you really cheered me up from the slump I was going to fall into. I can't thank you enough for that."

Snow smiled at him, grabbing his uninjured hand. Albeit temporarily, Falcon had made her forget about the problems with Will, which is what she had needed. The escape was over now and it was time to face the real world once more.

"I'm gonna miss 'ya, babe. We coulda done 'uge things together in California." Falcon put his hand on her cheek as she nodded.

"Probably, but I know you will even if I'm not around. You've got such a drive that will take you far. Promise you won't forget about me when you become a big rock star, ok?"

He nodded. "Of course I won't. In fact," Falcon took the ring off his finger and handed it to her. "Please keep this. I want you to have something to remember me by."

"Absolutely, thank you." Snow smiled, putting the ring on her right hand this time. "I'll cherish it forever."

"I'm glad. 'Ey," Falcon stroked her hand. "'Ow a-bout a good bye kiss? You know, as a last memento?"

Snow shrugged and leaned in. "Sure."

There was no denying that Falcon was a good kisser. Great, actually. She would miss him, his devilish sense of humor and captivating yet crooked smile, and especially his tongue piercing. Snow really enjoyed his company and jamming with him had been quite the adventure.

"Hey, I got-ta great idea. 'Ow 'bout one final shag? We can give each other a prop-ah send off." Falcon asked once they pulled away, making Snow laugh.

"Now you're pushing it. You're crazy, Falcon, but don't ever change. You shine and don't ever let it full, ok?"

"You got it."

Taking her hand, he walked Snow to the door, giving her a lingering hug. When she pulled away, there were tears in his eyes, the realization having kicked in.

He really does care about me. Maybe I'm making a mistake.

"Goodbye, love. I hope that whatever you decide that you'll be happy, even if it is with that ginger wanker Will. He doesn't deserve you."

Considering what Will did to her, she had braced herself to hear that from just about everybody. It was true, and besides the point, but only time would tell.

"I'll never forget you, Falcon." She put her hand on his cheek one final time. "Please, take care of yourself? And Emerson, too."

Falcon nodded. "I will."

"Bye."

Turning around once the door closed, Snow's emotions were so mixed right now. Would she regret this later? Maybe a little, but there was no way for this relationship to have worked because it was so rushed.

Better we got out now before we were really in over our heads.

Walking down the hall to the elevator, a curly haired stylish blonde walked past her. Snow recognized her as Falcon's neighbor that she had seen once or twice before but they had never been introduced. The girl gave her a sly smile on the way by, enough to make Snow stop in her tracks.

There was such confidence in her stride, and they both knew where she was headed, the only thing that wouldn't be answered is if she had gone there before...


	21. Open Wounds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will pulls out all the stops in getting Snow back with a little help from his friends; Snow finally comes clean.

**Hi, everybody! Great news: I'm returning back to school! I will do everything possible to juggle both school and writing, it's who I am! Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed. This chapter is a big one, Will pulls out all the stops and Snow finally reveals her secrets! This was a bit difficult for me to write, I've never done illness before, so don't go too hard on me! I got Snow's dancing from a bit of the dancing that Jennifer Lawrence did to the same song in _Silver Lining's Playbook_ , so be sure to YouTube it. Ironically enough, a while back Snow was compared to her character Tiffany from the movie, I'm not sure if Will would be Bradley Cooper's character Pat though. Lol! I really need to post the OC list on my profile, but I picture Ethan Embry as Duke (Back when he had more hair).**

**_DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN NOR HAVE ANY AFFILIATIONS WITH IN YOUR EYES, HERO OR LIKE I CAN. ALL PROPERTIES OWNED BY PETER GABRIEL, ENRIQUE IGLESIAS AND SAM SMITH, RESPECTIVELY. I ONLY OWN MY OWN ORIGINAL IDEAS AND CHARACTERS._ **

**_Chapter Twenty One: Open Wounds_ **

Snow snuggled up in her bed, having just finished a cup of tea and was about to start reading Me Before You. She was finally calmed down from earlier with Falcon, still unable to shake the look of his sadness from her mind.

While it broke her own heart to inflict this, it had to be done. She couldn't force herself to do something in order to avoid a bigger picture. That and she had a feeling Falcon would have no problem moving on, if he hadn't already. Truth be told, the look that blonde gave her was a bit haunting...

**_"All my instincts, they return_ **

**_And the grand facade, so soon will burn_ **

**_Without a noise, without my pride_ **

**_I'll reach out from the inside."_ **

Her thoughts were interrupted by the music and she gasped the instant she heard the lyrics.

**_No... No way..._ **

Snow put the book down and scurried to the window, her heart thumping excitedly as she threw her window open and looked out.

Down below on the street, Will was wearing Converse flat tops, jeans and a Rolling Stones three quarter sleeved raglan shirt with a short sleeved open button up, holding a boombox high above his head as the chorus played.

"Will?! What are you doing? Are you serious right now?"

He nodded, his fingers clutching the boombox.

"It was the only way to get your attention."

"Why aren't you still at the hospital?"

He shook his head. "This was more important. Besides, I wasn't really wanted." He was of course referring to Natalie's mother-in-law Helen more or less telling him to back off. Maybe it was a sign, because he was miserable and couldn't be without her any longer.

"Can we please talk?"

Snow opened her mouth to say yes, thinking this was some kind of kismet, except for she restrained herself, the walls coming back up again.

"Did you really have to copy Say Anything frame for frame? You get an A for effort, but be more original, man."

"Wait, don't!"

Will shouted up at her but she had already closed the window. He turned to Jay and their childhood best friend Duke, who looked at him helplessly.

"Now what?" Duke asked.

"You're not giving up this easily, Will. I won't let you." Jay spoke, but all Will did was shake his head.

"I'm not giving up, not a chance in hell. This isn't working. Quick, get the guitar and the microphone."

She was tempted to talk to him but didn't want to give in so easily. He had to prove he could win her with a fight... well, besides whatever the hell happened in the elevator last week.

**_"I can be your hero, baby._ **

**_I can kiss away the pain._ **

**_I will stand by you forever._ **

**_You can take my breath away"_ **

In truth, she loved this song. No way she would let him know that. Snow opened the window again to see Will strumming an acoustic guitar and had a synthesizer microphone headset connected to his car speakers, people walking by couldn't help but stop and stare. She vaguely remembered seeing the guitar at his house. For a drummer, he wasn't a bad player at all.

"He dies at the end of the music video, try again. If I could pick a song for you, it would be "You Oughta Know" by Alanis Morrisette." She turned her back once more.

"Damn it!" Will grumbled, throwing off the guitar strap and grabbing it by the neck, raising it above his head.

"No, no!" Duke rushed up, prying the guitar out of his hands with a struggle. "Do not pull a Pete Townsend!"

"Speak from the heart, man." Jay said.

"Snow, come on!" Will pleaded, sounding like a robot with the microphone still on. "I'm only on this microphone because my voice sounds like a dying cat without it, I'm not a talented singer like you are. Here, I'll try one more song and if you don't like it, I don't know what to do next."

"Snow, he's being 100% sincere right now." Jay shouted up. "He knows what he did was wrong and wants to redeem himself. Is there any chance that you'll come down and listen to him, please?"

Even though they had only interacted the one time, Snow knew that Jay was being sincere.

"Yeah, he wants you for more than just sex, Snow! He told me himself!"

"Duke!"

Both Will and Jay slapped Duke against the back of his head. Snow had never met him in person but she had seen quite a few pictures, for he was Will and Jay's oldest friend. He was kind of cute with short brownish-red hair and green eyes, known to be a partier to the max.

Will started strumming along to "Like I Can" by Sam Smith and singing along with the synthesizer.

**_"Why are you looking down all the wrong roads?_ **

**_When mine is the heart and the salt of the soul_ **

**_There may be lovers who hold out their hands_ **

**_But they'll never love you like I can, can, can_ **

**_They'll never love you like I can, can"_ **

Snow still shook her head, but they could tell by the look on her face that she was slowly giving in. "I can't be with somebody that will only give me their shadow!"

"I'll give you the world, babe! I'd fly you to the moon and back! Just come down here, please!"

Will was desperate at this point, not knowing what else to do.

"Alright, I'll come down!"

"Woo Hoo!" Duke cheered, high fiving Jay.

Her heart was beating madly as she pulled on some clothes over her pajamas and raced down the stairs. This was it, wasn't it? She couldn't help but be reminded of some rom com.

Will ran up the steps the second she opened the door, grabbing her hands and getting on his knees.

"Will, what-"

He shook his head. "No questions yet. Please just hear me out."

Still hesitant, she found herself nodding.

"Ok."

"I screwed things up between us so badly and I hate myself for it, the way it tore you down. I can't begin the apology tour any sooner, but I want you. I've always wanted you, and I want to be the one to catch you when you're falling, glue your broken heart back together again and remind you that you're truly not alone. I'm begging you, Snow. Please, please do not run off to California with Falcon. He's not the one you're supposed to be with. It's too soon and you're mismatched."

His words were absolutely beautiful, but how truthful were they? "Will, Falcon and I broke up."

Will restrained himself from breaking out and jumping into a fist pump. "What? When?"

"A few hours ago, but why should I believe a single word you're saying? You didn't just break my heart, you shattered it and humiliated me in front of all our friends."

He wasn't sure how much he had gotten through, but he had to keep going.

"Look, I'm an asshole, alright? I'm full of myself, stubborn, cocky and arrogant."

"You're pretty much the personification of that Britney Spears song "Womanizer"."

Will allowed himself to smile. This is why he fell in love with her, spunky little moments like this.

"I won't deny you're right on that. I'm a mess, I knew that you wouldn't put up with it and would eventually leave, which is why I pushed you away. I wasn't thinking with the timing and it was unintentional. That and I didn't want to get hurt again after I was so jilted. We all have a past, but I don't care about yours. I mean," He cleared his throat and stood up, never letting go of her hands. "I do care, but it's not going to change how I feel about you in the slightest. You're the quirky pseudo goth with blue and magenta streaks in your hair, you're a junk foodie and you're brave and considerate, but that makes you who you are and I wouldn't want you to be anybody else. You're my girl, and the thought of you with anybody else makes me almost breathless. I made you lose your smile and I want to help you get it back again."

She hadn't expected this at all, especially not now, and especially not from him. It was only something she had hoped for, but it wasn't confirmed until this very moment by the tears in his eyes. Her mother had told her that only real men cry, especially when they're in love.

"Are you saying-" He nodded. "Do you lo-"

Will kept nodding. "Yes, yes. I do. I am. I have for a while. I just didn't want to accept it because I was scared."

"You really hurt my feelings, Will. I was crushed, I still am. You shouldn't have made assumptions so quickly. You already opened up to me, you didn't need to stop. I wouldn't have judged you. Not at all."

Now her own eyes were tearing up. She had never felt such strong emotions before, not with Skeet or Falcon. This was what was meant to be, the real deal.

"I know, and I'm going to do whatever I can to make it up to you."

He put his hands on her cheeks and kissed her, her tears falling as she shut her eyes. The moment their lips touched, all Snow could hear were fireworks blasting and party buzzers going off, the world continuing to spin with the two of them standing still. She knew once she opened her eyes the sounds of her mind would disappear, but when they did, the magic still remained.

"When I'm around you, I can never seem to find the words I want to say, and yet the only thing I can think about is the words that you make me feel, but that makes it all the more mystifying. I don't want you with Zoe or Natbitch or the Coyote Ugly chick or anybody! It's unrealistic, it's too soon and it's crazy, but I know what I'm feeling. I want you with me. We're like that song by The Lumineers, I belong with you and you belong with me."

Snow grabbed his shirt by the chest and pulled him down to level, giving him a kiss as she jumped in his arms. He wasn't expecting it, which is why he laughed into the kiss and nearly stumbled, but he caught her and he always would.

She rested her head on his shoulder, her hand combing through the bottom of his hair. "I love you, Will Halstead." She whispered in his ear, giving it a kiss. "I love you."

He smiled, feeling over the moon that his plan worked and hugged her tighter. "I love you, Snow Greyson."

"My Fry, my Rio."

"My Jem, my Leela."

They were interrupted when something wet landed on their skin. Looking up at the sky, they were taken aback by the light snowflakes that were falling.

"Oh, my god! It's snowing!"

"It's a sign, don't you think?"

"It has to be."

Snow pulled away and jumped down, her hand stroking his button up shirt. "Would you like to come inside?"

Will nodded. "I'd love to."

"Great, just give me a moment to get things together."

"Ok. I'll be here waiting." He kissed her cheek before she went inside, closing the door behind her.

For what was the first time in ages, Snow felt special, accepted and loved by an outsider. Will Halstead had been one of the reasons for her work distress, but the tides had changed. She had fallen in love with him, but what was even better was that he had fallen in love with her as well.

"He picked me." Snow whispered to herself. "He picked me over the Barbie and the bitch." She laughed before pumping her arms in the air. "WOO-HOO!"

Still laughing to herself, she placed her phone in the iHome and blasted it, "Fell In Love With A Girl" by The White Stripes started blaring. Snow tore off her jacket and pajama bottoms, only in her tank top and boy shorts, and started dancing around.

This wasn't normal dancing, it was insane. Head banging, jumping around on counter tops, skipping, even a back flip. She was so deliriously happy right now, flying into the galaxy and completely out of orbit.

Snow had just finished spinning around when she happened to glance over and saw Will leaning against the doorframe, watching her.

"Uh, what are you doing?" She asked, feeling utterly embarrassed, especially when it was obvious he was trying not to laugh.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that? Although," he pulled his phone out of his pocket. "it's given me a great idea. You should start the song over again."

"What did you have in mind?"

"You'll see."

 

* * *

 

"Here we are, back again." Will said as Snow led him into her bedroom by the hand, closing the door behind them.

"Except this time you've already gotten into my pants."

"That's true."

Snow tried to met his gaze but she found herself looking all around, giggling. Will smiled, tilting his head to make eye contact.

"What is it, Jem? You can tell me."

She finally looked up, her cheeks tinted pink, throwing her arms around him, inhaling his scent and resting her head on his muscular chest.

"I missed this, I missed you. I shouldn't have, but I did."

Will wrapped his arms around her, pulling Snow closer to him. "I missed you, too. Like crazy. At one point I was confiding my woes to Nemo."

"Are you serious?" Snow asked with a smile.

"Bananas, right?"

"Nope. I managed to rub off on you."

They stayed in that embrace for a little bit longer, familiarizing themselves with the feel of the other's body.

"But Will," Snow pulled away, looking up at him with such worry in her eyes. "what are we going to do about Natalie? She obviously has feelings for you, we were arguing about you when her water broke. What if I somehow caused distress to the baby? I've been waiting all day to get the boot."

He shook his head. "You have nothing to worry about, the baby is fine and you're not getting fired. I'm not in love with her, I'm in love with you. If she really cares about me, she'll come around."

"I don't know if we'll ever really be friends. I see right through her."

"We'll deal with it soon, not right now. Right now it should be about the two of us, don't you think?"

Snow nodded, knowing she had waited long enough. "You're right, and there's something I have to tell you. Here, let's sit." She sat cross legged on the bed, taking both his hands in her's as he sat down, her heart skipping beats.

"Like I've mentioned once before, you never have to doubt my honesty or how sincere I am as a person. With that being said, there's a few things I haven't told you. Well, I haven't told many people about it, actually." Snow took a deep breath, staring down at her lap until one of Will's hands left her's and landed on her shoulder.

"It's ok, sweetheart. You don't have to be afraid or worry. Nothing will sway my opinion. Please tell me."

She nodded, feeling a little bit at ease and deciding it was best to blunt or else she'd never talk. "I was sick, Will. I had cancer. Or the beginning stages of it, essentially. We don't know how or why, it just happened. A random, fucked up occurrence."

Will stared at her, baffled. It was the last thing he ever expected to hear. His brain was desperately trying to come up with what exactly to say to her. "Is that why-"

Snow nodded again. "They caught it early, but I still had to undergo a mastectomy and chemo and radiation. I got the surgery done at Chicago Med, it's how I met Dr. Charles and Ms. Goodwin. My life totally changed, Will. I lost all my hair, I couldn't eat, I looked like death warmed over, and that made me depressed. I stopped working as much, I'm amazed I even finished school. How very _The Fault In Our Stars_ , right?"

Snow laughed before bowing her head, which was when Will thought she was crying. He tried to put his hand on her face, but she shrugged him off.

"No, no, don't. Don't feel sorry for me, I'm not telling you this so you'll feel sorry for me. I'm telling you this so you know. If we're going to be together, you have to know my secret like I know all of yours."

**_It's been over a year, why am I crying now?_ **

**_Because you've been letting it fester all this time and you need to let it out. Will understands, he loves you._ **

If they wanted to move forward, he had to know this and in a sense she felt relieved to finally get it out in the open.

"Where did you get treatment at?"

His broken heart was beating so slowly and he was cursing himself for all the times he was an asshole to her. She hadn't done anything to deserve it, it had all been on him.

"Cancer Treatment Centers of America in Philadelphia. They have one in Chicago as well but I didn't want anybody else besides my parents or brother to know. It was hard enough explaining it to Leaf, he was so young. I couldn't have done it without my family." She grabbed her phone and showed him a picture. It was from the first month of her radiation, all of them were sitting around with bandanas on. "They actually shaved their heads for me as a surprise, I couldn't stop laughing. At one point I considered wearing a fedora and going by Heisenberg."

"They're a very supportive family, you lucked out."

He couldn't help but think of his mother, how she had gone through the exact same treatments, when she lost her hair and some days was too weak to even leave bed, her spirit slowly being drained from her body as each day passed. His mother had been young, but not like Snow.

"I had a goal though. My goal was to run again. Little by little, I got stronger as the days went on. Before we went back home to Frankemuth, I accomplished something I had wanted to do since I was a little girl: the Rocky Steps."

Snow pulled up a video and showed Will. She was stretching at the bottom of the steps and took a deep breath as her dad cheered her on, simultaneously filming her while "Gonna Fly Now" started playing as she ran, running up the stairs with her.

"Come on, Snow. You can do it, you gotta hit the top! Yes! That's it! Go, go, go!"

Snow ran harder, finally reaching the top and jumping up in the air, Maia and Leaf embracing her in a huge hug as the gathered crowd cheered her on, but nobody was louder than Vince, who picked her up and spun her around.

"Wow, that's something else." Will said with a smile. "I'm proud of you, I don't even think I could do that."

"Thanks, and I'm sure you could. It's why he calls me Rocky."

"You earned the nickname."

Will finally realized why her father had been misty eyed in the parking lot when they left Bridgeport following Leaf's accident. For the rest of their lives, he would always be worried about his little girl. It was probably worse now that her parents knew what Will did to their daughter. How on earth was he going to fix it?

"The video went viral and I even got a personal letter from Sylvester Stallone commending me for my courageous battle. Once I went into remission, my appetite came back ravenously. With the pressure of school and recovery and Skeet, I became really stressed so I would indulge myself. That's the reason for all my snacks, I haven't quite gotten a grip on it. I mean, I have because I work out a lot afterwards and don't ever throw up, but I guess I don't."

She had classic symptoms of Binge eating disorder and it had him concerned. Did Dr. Charles know about it? There had to have been some way to help her out.

"Who else knows? Like in Chicago?"

"Dr. Charles and Ms. Goodwin, like I mentioned, and of course Sylvie. Dr. Downey, and you know how astute Maggie is, she more than likely knows. It's not something I can just come out and say to anybody, like "Hi, nice to meet you, I'm Snow Greyson and I had breast cancer."

Panic quickly rose, that feeling of surrealness one gets right after a black out. She had been suppressing this for so long, and if anybody besides Dr. Downey knew what this was like, it was Will.

"I lost a part of me. It's true what they say, you don't realize what you have until it's gone. I'm glad that I have them at all, but I'll have to live the rest of my life knowing that these aren't real. Every day I wake up and I feel a little more secure, but I don't know if I'll ever fully heal. I just feel like a freak." Snow bowed her head, letting her tears fall as a sob wracked her body, all the tears she had been holding in came flooding out.

"Great. Now I can't stop crying."

For as in love as she was with Will, their relationship had brought on many tears from the start. Anybody else would have dubbed her a masochist, but sometimes love was truly sad.

"Hey," Will wrapped his arm around her neck, pulling her in gently to him. "let it out, baby. It's going to be ok. I'm here for you."

His head sunk into the pillows, wrapping both arms around Snow as her cries were muffled into his chest. This had been quite the emotional evening, with forgiveness and revelations. It didn't make him love her any less. If anything, he felt closer and their bond was stronger, more so than with any other girl before.

Will pulled Snow up, leaving a trail of soft kisses on her tear stained cheeks until arriving at her pouty pink lips. This kiss was the most meaningful of all, showing how much he cared and that there weren't any judgments, that there wouldn't be any running away a second time. He wanted to exhibit his feelings by making the sweetest love to her, but right now he gave her the biggest gift he could: his heart.


	22. Plunges

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will reflects on the first time he saw Snow; Snow apologizes to Connor; Will makes a huge leap for Snow

**Hi, everybody! Sorry for the delay again, I've been swamped with school and my _Suicide Squad_ story _Angel of Malice_ , but I'm finally back! I had to update both _Chicago_ stories today in honor of the Chicago Cubs going to the World Series! Congrats, Cubbies! Also, who else is LOVING Will and Nina together?! Shoestead FOR THE WIN! Also, I'd like to announce that I finally cast Snow: American actress/singer Jennifer Love Hewitt! She's apparently one of my dopplegangers, not to mention undeniably stunning. Let me know what you think!**

**Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed: CPDPFCCMED7410, fallingforfiction, M39151, Ms. Isabella and daniellepaduch26! Be sure to check out their stories, they are quite awesome!**

**_Chapter Twenty Two: Plunges_ **

**_THREE MONTHS AGO_ **

_Will pulled up to the gym, wanting to forget all about the night before and the clingy girl that he ended up bringing home. Nothing better to clear his head like a workout._

_Plugging in and heading over to an available treadmill, he noticed a girl on the machine next to his. Will tried to get a good look at her but she was too in the zone of running, clutching her iPhone and focusing on CNN._

_She was pretty cute, a tall brunette with blue and magenta streaks in her hair, her tight yoga pants and top making every curve of her body visible._

_Mmm, nice ass._

_He wanted to keep staring at her but knew it would be rude and that she'd eventually catch on, so he just started running._

_AN HOUR AND A HALF LATER_

_"So far everything is really good. We went to this bar that a lot of her friends hang out at, they're really nice. I think I'm going to like it here in Chicago."_

_Will was behind the girl with the colored streaks, walking out of the gym. Normally, he would have struck up a conversation with her, but had no idea what to say. All his pickup lines seemed so stupid now, this one was special._

_Wanting her acknowledgment somehow, he opened the door behind her. When she turned around she gave him an adorable megawatt smile._

_"Thanks."_

_Will smiled back at her, his heart racing a bit. "N-no problem."_

_Still smiling, she turned around and walked to her car, resuming her conversation. Will saw her getting into an Audi, wishing he could have said more._

_Why didn't I? Usually I'm so smooth._

_Starting her car, "What's My Age Again?" by blink-182 played, the girl momentarily bobbing her head as she backed out._

_Will's smile grew wider, instant memories of kegger handstands and rowdy parties at Kappa Phi Beta popping into his mind. He had to find this girl again somehow._

_THE NEXT DAY_

_Will walked down the hall and towards the front desk, where he saw what must have been the new nurse. Looking her up and down, he felt he wind knocked out of him when he realized she was the girl from yesterday, her colored streaks being the ultimate indicator._

_Today must be my lucky day... How the hell will I be able to put the moves on her? Why couldn't she work at Molly's or somewhere else?_

_There had to be a way around this, but until he figured it out, it had him pretty annoyed._

 

Will opened his eyes and looked down to see Snow sleeping next to him. Her hair was tangled in every which way and she was drooling on her pillow, but it made him smile at how positively adorable she was, even in her sleep.

Snow's eyes fluttered when she felt a pair of lips kissing her forehead, opening them all the way and smiling herself.

"Mmm, were you watching me sleep just now?"

He nodded. "Yep. You look so cute."

She snorted and closed her eyes again, covering her face with her arm. "Yeah, right. I look horrible, don't flatter me."

"Ha, not even close. I was just thinking of the first time I saw you."

"What, at the hospital?"

Will shook his head. "No, it was at the gym the day before you started working. I went there to work off the horrible one night stand I had, you were on the treadmill next to me. I actually held the door open for you."

"Oh, I remember now! I don't know how I forgot the very next day, I think your jerkiness threw me off."

"Well, I think you know now that I'm sorry and that's not how I am... all the time."

"Definitely."

Snow smiled, everything feeling so calm and serene in comparison to the past couple of weeks. "I thought it was all a dream." She put her hand on his face, stroking his cheek. "I just want to make sure this is real."

Will shook his head, taking her hand from his face and giving it a kiss. "It's not a dream, I'm here and I'm not going anywhere again. I promise."

She was tempted to ask him if that was a promise he could keep, but the moment was too perfect.

"We're really doing this, aren't we?" Snow sat up, resting her head on her knees, looking up at him with her doe eyes.

"I'm all in, are you? We're pretty much together now."

She cracked a smile. "Dude, Will Halstead is my boyfriend." Snow bent her head down and laughed. "Whoa, that's pretty funny. I'm dating a womanizer."

"Former womanizer."

"I can imagine what Leaf will tell his friends at school. "My sister's dating Gingy Doctor!"

Will smiled, thinking of the little spit fire. "So is that a yes?"

As Snow opened her mouth to speak, she shut it abruptly and shook her head.

"As much as I want to, I can't just yet. There's some things we need to take care. Are you up for it?"

Will nodded and gripped her hand. "Of course. You take the lead and I'll follow."

What Snow had in mind for Will would follow later. First, there was somebody she had been unintentionally avoiding.

**_Chicago Med, 8:00 AM_ **

"Yo, Choi Boi!"

Ethan turned around when he saw Snow entering the hospital waving to him.

"Hey, Snow. I thought you were leaving early?"

She shook her head. "Nope, had a change of heart, my friend. Looks like you're stuck with me."

He got the biggest smile on his face. "Snow, that's amazing!" Ethan lifted her off the ground in a hug and twirled her around, making Snow laugh. He quickly set her down, feeling embarrassed for making such a scene.

"Uh, sorry about that. I'm just really glad you're not going with Falcon."

"It wasn't meant to be, but I'm figuring it all out." She glanced over at Connor. "Although, there's still some things I need to fix."

Snow still felt guilty for the poor manner she handled things with Connor. He really didn't deserve it, but even if he didn't forgive her, she wanted him to know how she felt.

"Go on," Ethan nudged her. "I'll catch you later."

Snow smiled at her friend. "Thanks." She turned around as she walked out. "Now it's you're turn. Ask out your neighbor with the parrot."

Ethan shrugged. "No way, I don't know if she's interested in me."

"Take the leap, Choi. It's not that bad on the other side."

Snow stood in the hallway, glancing at Connor as she went over in her head what she was going to say to him. She had never been more nervous in her life, so much so that she had an entire roll of Bubble Tape in her mouth, giving herself massive chipmunk cheeks.

"Connor... Connor..."

He wasn't too far away, but her voice just wouldn't come out louder than a squeak. Was she really nervous? Maybe the gum wasn't helping.

"Connor!"

That time it was so loud that Maggie and everybody else in the area looked over at her. Snow felt her face flush as Connor motioned her over to where he was standing.

Snow walked up to him, feeling like she was about to trip over her sneaker, her stomach knotting as she swallowed her gum.

He gave her a small smile. "Hey, Snow. How goes it?" Connor looked down at her hand. "What happened to your ring?"

"Oh," Snow started clasping her hands back and forth nervously. "that whole thing really didn't work out after all. I was just wondering if we could talk?"

Connor hesitated. "I'm not so sure about that, Snow."

His reply crushed her, even though they both knew what she was going to say. "Please? It would really mean a lot to me. You don't even have to reply, just hear me out."

He sighed before nodding. "Go ahead."

"Look, I'm sorry for the way I handled things between us. It was wrong and I don't want you to think I was taking advantage of you. I wasn't. I was just very torn and confused and thought I wanted one thing when I really wanted another. My head has been all over the place but that's really no excuse. I want you to know how truly sorry I am. You were nothing but a gentleman to me since I started here and you have no idea how much I appreciate that."

Snow has spoken so fast he almost didn't hear her, but he got every word.

"Was it me or something I did?"

"No! Not at all. Connor, you're probably the closest thing to perfect that exists."

"Then what was it?"

Snow happened to glance over to see Will chewing on his pen at the front desk. She smiled, thinking of what a cute quirk it was and glad that things were finally settled.

"Sometimes, when you have the prince or even the king, you can't help but fall for the jester."

Connor followed her gaze, knowing what she was saying. "Maybe being with you will be the personality transplant he so desperately needs."

They exchanged a laugh before she turned back to look at Connor.

"I hope that you can find it in your heart to forgive me. I do care a lot about you and I want you to be happy. Just, please don't end up with the Ice Queen."

Connor furrowed his brows. "Who?"

"Uh, I mean Bitch Surgeon- Dr. Zanetti! Damn, I really need to stop doing that."

He couldn't help but smile, Snow managed to bring that out in everybody. "It was nothing serious, not to mention she left. I started dating a nurse over at Lakeshore."

Snow's face lit up. "That's great! I'm so happy for you."

"Thanks. I really liked you, you know."

"I really liked you, too. I still like you. For a while, I'll wonder if I made the right decision."

She wouldn't tell Will that, but since things were official and still new, she wouldn't be letting go of her doubts anytime soon.

"Only time would tell. Friends?"

"Best friends." Snow stepped forward and gave him a hug, feeling a huge sense of relief.

Connor grinned and returned the hug. "You got it."

**_NORTH AVENUE BEACH, LATER IN THE EVENING_ **

"Are you sure about this? What's the motive again?"

Will looked from the ocean to Snow and his brother, who both were trying to hide smirks.

"You need to feel the epitome of running hot and cold, Will."

"But don't you think this is a little extreme? I could die. I still can't feel my tongue from those hot wings we just had."

When they got off work, Snow and Jay took Will to Crisp, which was notorious for having the hottest chicken wings in all of Chicago. Now they were at North Avenue Beach just as the sun was setting and the moon was rising, a slight wind picking up in the air.

Snow scoffed. "You will not! We have all the things you need for once you come out."

"She's right, bro. That and when you love somebody, you're supposed to do anything for them."

"Including freezing my nuts off?"

Jay nodded. "Yep. They don't call it a polar bear plunge for nothing. You've gone skydiving six thousand feet up in the air but you're afraid of a little water?"

Will rolled his eyes at his brother and his girlfriend laughing at him. "Alright, alright, fine. I'll do it."

"Down to your skivvies, Halstead, and here," Snow pulled something out of her backpack and put it on Will. "find me something pretty down there!"

She and Jay could no longer hold back and started laughing over how ridiculous Will looked in the rainbow goggles.

"And this had to be the day I wore my Super Mario boxer shorts." He mumbled to himself as he stripped off his clothing, only to receive more laughs from the duo.

"Oh, my gosh! Those boxers are so cute!" Snow and Jay were holding onto each other they were laughing so hard.

"Go jump on some mushrooms for me, bro."

"Whatever. I'm going in."

"Woo Hoo!" Snow cheered as Will walked towards the ocean before turning to Jay. "You got the camera ready?"

"Ha, oh yeah. This is something that can't be missed."

"Totally. Jay?"

"Yeah, Snow?"

She smiled at him. "Thanks for helping Will out through all this. He's really lucky to have a brother like you."

He nodded, giving her shoulder a squeeze. "No problem. I knew he made a big mistake and I had to help him reverse it."

"Ahhh, fuck! It's fucking cold mother fucker! Fuck!"

Will started shouting as soon as he got in the water, which was practically ice for November. He shouldn't have agreed to this at all, it was kind of ridiculous and the fact that he had to dive in was pretty rough.

"Woo Hoo! Go Will go! Go Will go! Yeah!"

He turned around to see Snow cheering for him and that was the only thing that made any of this matter. Jay was right, you really should do anything for the person you love and Will did love her. There would be people that wouldn't believe it. Plus, every time he wanted to doubt the relationship he'd remember how hot the wings were and how freezing the ocean was.


	23. Love Me Tomorrow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A dental emergency interrupts Will and Snow's romantic evening; Snow meets Will's cousin Clover, who has a big surprise for Will; Will reassures Snow of his feelings for her; Natalie is unsettled by happy news.

**Hi, everybody! Sorry for the delay again, I've been swamped with school once again, no joke I'll be on my laptop for a straight week working on notes and projects. I'm thrilled to introduce Will and Jay's cousin Clover (formerly named Peyton) and her assistant Amadeus! They are played by Ellie Kemper and Titus Burgess, respectively. I was inspired by their show** **_Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt._ ** **For Clover's husband Toby I haven't cast him yet, I think he'll be played by Andy Samberg, but there will be a surprise from Will's past coming up! I finally finished** **_Catching Fire_ ** **and am now on** **_Mockingjay!_ ** **I had to include it :).**

**Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed: M39151 and Ms. Isabella! Why the lack of reviews?! Be sure to check out their stories, they are quite awesome!**

**_DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN NOR HAVE ANY AFFILIATIONS WITH MAKE YOU FEEL MY LOVE OR WILL YOU LOVE ME TOMORROW. ALL PROPERTIES OWNED BY BOB DYLAN AND CAROLE KING, RESPECTIVELY. I ONLY OWN MY OWN ORIGINAL IDEAS AND CHARACTERS._ **

**_Chapter Twenty Three: Love Me Tomorrow_ **

**_A WEEK LATER_ **

"So, what did you think of the ending? Are you satisfied?" Will asked as he walked hand in hand out of the movie theater with Snow. They had just caught the midnight screening of _The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part Two_. Luckily, they managed to get good seats despite the hoarde of fans that either missed the Chicago premiere last week or were seeing it a second time.

"I'm not sure. It was bittersweet I suppose, I just wish that Finnick would have been spared. He was supposed to, it was just never changed from the book and apparently same for the movie. That and I knew after Prim died that Coin was a goner. "

"I get what you mean. The whole portion with Gale fell a bit flat, but I'm glad Peeta finally snapped out of it. As always, killer effects."

"Schyeah! Like that glass gasoline pit gave me shivers or those creepy mutants!"

"It was pretty adorable how you got the sniffles, cutie pie." Will smiled down at Snow, gripping her hand, making her blush.

"Hey, there were a few tear worthy moments! Like with Prim and of course my poor Peeta was so traumatized."

"Your poor Peeta? What am I, yesterday's news?"

"Awww, is somebody jealous?" Snow stopped walking and looked up at him, her dimples popping. "What, was that make out session during the boring part not enough for you?"

"No, I'm not jealous! Uh-"

She giggled at how embarrassed he suddenly became. "You don't have to be. There's no guy that comes before you, my love." Snow leaned up and gave him a kiss.

"Good to know and likewise."

"By the way, thanks for the popcorn. How did you know ranch seasoning was my favorite?" She asked as they started walking again while she munched on the popcorn in her free hand.

"You mentioned it when we watched _Game of Thrones_. Which reminds me, you wanna know what would make this night perfect?"

"I thought it already was, but entertain me."

"If you spent the night."

"Ha, oh really now?"

Will nodded. "Mmhmm. It's been quite a while since we made love."

Snow nearly choked on her popcorn trying not to laugh, making Will confused.

"What happened to "Honey, that wasn't making love, it was really amazing sex." She asked him, mocking his voice, to which they both smiled.

"I don't know why I said that, but I believe in it. Aren't you a little young to be saying that?"

Snow shook her head. "Nope, I'm a romantic."

"You sure are. It's not just that, there's something really wonderful about going to sleep and waking up with you right next to me. So, what do you say?"

She felt her heart skip a beat over the look in his eyes, knowing that he meant the sleepover as his girlfriend and not some floozy. This was the real deal... finally.

"Okay." Snow batted her eyelashes.

"Yeah? Great."

"It'll be nice. After all, it has been a while." She put some more popcorn in her mouth.

"I hope you wore one of your superhero panties, I think they're so cute on-"

"Ow!"

A loud cracking sound made them stop.

"Snow, what's wrong?"

Snow started poking around her cheek with her tongue before opening her mouth and pulling something out, her eyes widening as she ran her tongue over the jagged edge of her back tooth.

"Oh, my gosh. I just cracked my tooth!"

"From the popcorn?"

She nodded. "I'm pretty sure. What the hell am I going to do?! It's one in the morning."

Will took her by the hand and led her to the car before she had an anxiety attack, whipping out his phone.

"Don't worry, babydoll. It'll be ok. I know just who to call."

**_FORTY FIVE MINUTES LATER_ **

"Alright, here we are." Will opened the door to the dentist office, leading Snow inside.

"I can't tell you how grateful I am right now, I-"

"Wait a sec." Will looked all around the waiting room, under the chairs and coffee table, before redirecting his attention back to Snow. "Sorry, she has a tendency of sneaking up on me when I least expect it."

"Oh. Well, I was saying I'm really grateful-"

"Gotcha, Scooter!"

Will bent over slightly and groaned as somebody jumped on his back, making Snow silently gasp and take a step backwards.

"Did you really think you could out hide me?" The girl laughed.

"I was trying to, but it's near impossible with you, Skipper. Where did you come from?" He asked as he set her down, giving Snow a better look. She was somewhat petite with shoulder length auburn hair worn in a low ponytail.

"I'll never reveal my secrets." She wrapped her arms around Will's neck in a tight hug. "Will, I missed you so much! I hardly see you anymore!"

Will smiled as he returned the hug. "Clover, you saw me last week... and we just talked on the phone not even forty five minutes ago."

Clover shook her head. "It still feels too long!" She took his chin in her hand, turning his head from side to side. "You look pale. Will, I don't think you're getting enough sunshine and lollipops! Are you taking the vitamins I gave you? You have to take them! Do you want me to get you the gummy Disney kind that I take? They have _Cars_ and _Finding Nemo_! That way you won't feel so juvenile!"

She stood on her tiptoes to lift his eyelids, which was when he got her in a headlock and ruffled her hair, making her squeal in laughter. "No! No noggies, no noogies!"

"That's for the sneak attack, and yes I'm taking the vitamins." Will let her go, both of them still laughing.

"Good, then that excuses all noogies." Clover noticed Snow out of the corner of her eye and gasped happily, her hands flying to her cheeks. "Oh, my gosh! Is this her?" Her smile widened if that were even possible. "Hi! You're so pretty!" She walked over and gave Snow a huge hug. Snow couldn't help but be reminded of the first time she met Jay, it was practically the same reaction.

"Hi, it's really great to meet you, Clover. Thanks so much for tending to my emergency."

Clover shook her head as they separated. "Not a problem at all, I prefer nights anyway."

She had brown eyes and a bit of a pointed nose, not to mention perfect teeth, wearing a white lab coat and yellow Spongebob Squarepants scrubs.

"Come on back, my assistant and I are going to fix you right up. Amadeus!" Clover called as she walked down the hall from the waiting room with Will and Snow following behind, the latter noticing Clover's light up shoes with every step.

Snow looked around the office. Amongst the pictures of clients and their families, along with various stickers, there were lots of pictures of Will and Jay with Clover. One picture of them playing in the snow when they were little, another where they were covered head to toe in cake at Clover's sweet sixteen. Clover on Will's shoulders with Jay next to them, clad in Chicago Bears jerseys and shouting at the team. There was another picture of them with who Snow was guessing were Clover's parents and her husband at Clover's wedding in a flower filled garden, not to mention graduation pictures for all three of them. It was obvious that Clover and her parents played a huge part in Will and Jay's lives.

Will had warned Snow on the drive over how zany and eccentric Clover was, but she didn't mind. In fact, it made her wonder why the hell it had never rubbed off on Will.

"Here, take a seat." Clover instructed Snow. "I'm just so excited that my cousin has such a nice girl like you!" She looked over at Will. "Now you don't have to spend your Friday nights watching the "Anaconda" and "Blurred Lines" videos, Scooter!"

"That was one time, Clover." Will gritted through his teeth in embarrassment as Snow giggled.

"Why does she call you 'Scooter'?"

"When we were little I was too lazy to fully skateboard so I'd scoot back and forth and roll down from place to place."

Snow smiled up at him. "That's cute."

Clover grinned at the new couple, elated that her cousin was happy and in love. "I'm also relieved you're not with Evilsa."

"Who?" Will and Snow asked in unison.

"Evilsa, stands for Evil Elsa, because regular Elsa is too good to be compared to her."

Will rolled his eyes, both he and Snow well aware of who she was referring to.

"And to think, if it weren't for the swift kick in the pants I gave my cousin, he might have lost you forever. Open wide, Snow."

"What do you mean?" Snow asked, opening her mouth.

"Ooo, you've got some great chompers! It was my suggestion to do something grand and elaborate to win you back, like a flash mob set to "I'm Not Over" by Carolina Liar, but he said that was too much."

"Oh, nice!" Snow said through the dental instruments in her mouth. "I love flash mobs."

"I know a thing or two about them, I'm the president of Chicago's Flash Mob Crew! You should join! Anyways, then he remembered you mentioning that _Say Anything_ was one of your favorite movies and I told him to pull a Lloyd Dobbler and go for it! Toby totally agreed with me, too."

"Toby is Clover's husband." Will said.

"He works in the state attorney's office. Alright, looks like a pretty big crack on your lower right molar. Don't worry, we'll get you fixed right up, Snow." Clover patted Snow on the shoulder before calling out again. "Amadeus, hurry up!"

"I'm here without beer but I don't need it to chhhheeee-eeeeerrrr!"

A high pitched voice with a bit of rasp sang out, trotting into the room. He was a large and bald African American man with wide brown eyes and pouty lips, wearing a rainbow headband and hot pink scrubs lined with red feathers. He pursed his lips into a smile and sauntered over when he saw Will.

"Ooo, hel-lo, Will."

"Uh, hi." Will waved to him, looking all over. Amadeus had a giant crush, which made him kind of uncomfortable.

"You're looking ever so yummy today. Have you been working out lately?" Amadeus stroked his finger up Will's arm for a split second, making the latter thankful he was wearing long sleeves. "You should always wear short sleeves to show off those incredible arms. Rippling muscles, I'm about to give myself a hot flash! Woooo!" He fanned himself as Clover playfully smacked his arm.

"Earth to Beethoven! Stop drooling ! You have a boyfriend and Will's new girlfriend is right here!" Clover rolled her eyes towards Snow, making Amadeus roll his jaw and groan.

"Alright, alright! I'll take a break from ogling the mouthwatering eye candy. How do you expect me to work with this fine specimen of a man in our presence?" Amadeus pointed to Will and winked before looking down at Snow. "Hello there, snowflake. Aren't you a cutie? Amadeus Lockwood." Amadeus extended his hand out to Snow before putting the napkin like bib on her.

"Lockwood like-"

Will nodded. "Yep, he's Maggie's nephew."

"No way!" Snow smiled up at him. "I love her. Wow, what a small world."

If Amadeus had this reaction over Will, he'd probably give himself a heart attack looking at Connor, but Snow liked him. She could see where he got his sass from, his aunt Maggie.

"Okie dokie gin and smokey, I'm going to give you some nitrous oxide and then we'll get to work!"

Snow nodded as the mask was put on her nose, feeling the laughing gas seeping out.

"Have fun in dreamland!" Clover waved as Snow looked over at Will, who was taking off his jacket.

"Here, lift your head up, babe."

She slowly lifted her head as he folded his jacket and rested her head against it. The gesture in itself was so sweet, making her smile as the nitrous took over.

**_AN HOUR LATER_ **

"All done!" Clover sing songed as she finished on Snow's tooth. "Now you're positively perfect!"

"Thanks again, Clove. You're a lifesaver."

"Of course." She squeezed her cousin's shoulder. "I'm just really thrilled everything worked out."

He nodded. "So am I."

"I know that sometimes I get a little outrageous with you more than Jay, but it's because all I want is for you to be happy, Will. I love you, you're my brother."

Will smiled. "I love you, too, Skipper."

He and Jay were thankful that they had Clover and her parents, it made things with their father a little less bleak. Sometimes he wondered about him, but not very often.

"Oh, Will, before I forget, I have something for you."

Clover disappeared into her office and came back with a blue teddy bear holding a football.

"Thanks, Clover." Will said as he took the bear. "It's cute."

"Take off the football. I already gave Jay his and made him promise not to say anything."

Will pulled back the football, the bear's tummy reading "World's Best Uncle". He looked up at Clover and smiled. "What? Clover-"

"I'm pregnant!" She squealed, putting her hand on her barely there bump. "And it's a boy!"

"That's amazing! I'm really happy for you guys." Will gave his cousin a hug and a kiss on the cheek. He knew that Clover would make a great mother.

"Me, too." Clover said before stealing a glance at Snow, seeing her smile weakly and nodding as she woke up.

Snow was still feeling loopy and kept drifting in and out of sleep.

"Hhhhiiiii." She slurred her words and felt her face. "My whole mouth is numb! I look like a chipmunk! Where's Will?"

"Right here." He walked over and helped her get on her feet.

"Oh, hi." She smiled and threw her arms around him. "I missed you!"

Will returned the hug, trying not to laugh. "I missed you, too. Come on, let's go home."

 

 _Man, this is the longest I've seen laughing gas last._ Will thought to himself as he unlocked the door to Snow's place, leading her inside, who could not stop her case of the giggles for the whole car ride home.

"I wanna get my tongue pierced! Oh, my god! Fry, let's go right now!"

She grabbed Will by the hand, who chuckled.

"Snow, it's past three in the morning and I'm tired. Let's go to sleep."

Snow bit her lip, taking her jacket and shoes off, then threw them across the room.

"I know you don't want to go to sleep, but you want to sleep with me."

Without warning, she turned around and smashed her lips on his, making Will fall back on the stairs. He put his hands on her shoulders as she kissed his entire face.

"Snow, honey, relax. Do you want some Motrin or something?"

She shook her head. "The only thing I want is in between your legs, big boy. Come upstairs and give it to me." Snow licked the side of his face before crawling over him and up the stairs. He sat up and shook his head but followed her anyway.

Once he got to the top of the stairs, he heard crying, which made him run to her room to find Snow on her bed.

"Snow, what's wrong?! Are you alright?"

She shook her head, clutching onto her trusted snow leopard stuffed animal. "No, I'm not! How can I when I'm nothing more than a second choice to you?!"

"What are you talking about?" He sat down on the bed's edge and put his hand on her thigh. "Please look at me. How could you think that?"

Snow sat up, trying to stop the tears but failing. "If Natalie weren't around, I wouldn't be feeling this way at all! I'd have nothing to worry about, but I do! You were always teasing me when I first started. Tugging my streaks, snapping my bra straps, and then there was that slapping match at the staff meeting."

"I was teasing you." He rubbed her leg, thinking back on that day. "You were so shy and quiet, I was trying to get you out of your shell. I had no idea it hurt your feelings."

"It didn't! I'm not that sensitive! But you don't do any of that stuff to her. I saw the way you were with her and Owen when they left the hospital. She's your best friend and I'm not! You're my best friend! Ok, maybe not my best friend because of Emily and Sylvie but-" she shook her head. "No, screw that! You're my number one best friend now! Your partner is supposed to be your bestie. I'm your girlfriend, or am I? I love you, you stupid ass!"

Snow rolled over, burying her face in the pillow and started crying. Only minutes ago she had been silly and now she was sad, which was making Will upset.

"You're working yourself up for no reason."

Snow looked over at him, sitting up a bit

"Seriously, the thought of you two together-"

She gasped loudly and clutched her chest, her heart thudding and a hot sweat breaking out all over her body.

"I can't breathe, I can't breathe!"

Snow started hyperventilating, feeling around her nightstand drawer until finding a paper bag, shaking it out and putting it over her mouth. The last times her anxiety had been this bad were that day on the roof that started it all and the day she announced her engagement to Falcon.

"Jem, where is this coming from? All because of saying goodbye?"

She shook her head, breathing heavily into the bag.

"No, I overheard Maggie telling Ethan about how Natalie was asking for you during her delivery. Why would she want you in there?"

"I'm a doctor, that's why. It's my job."

"But you like her and she likes you! I wouldn't want you to see a human head coming out of my kitty! Like what the hell, man?!"

Snow felt dizzy and rested her head on the pillows, her breathing still erratic. All Will could do was watch and rub her shoulder. Under the surface she really had a lot of issues and it was quite devastating for somebody so young.

"I'm here for you."

Her breathing slowed a bit at his words, it came out of nowhere.

"I don't really know what to say or do in this kind of situation. It's hard to see you like this because it's the last thing I want. I hate seeing you like this." He took her hand in his. "Why are you having such doubt? Can't you see I'm crazy about you? I wouldn't be with you if I didn't love you."

Snow sat up and wiped her eyes. "Or you just might be crazy."

Will laughed silently. "Then let's be crazy together. Sounds like a plan to me, two crazies out to conquer the world."

This actually made her laugh, which had him relieved. "Your sense of humor has definitely gotten better."

"What was wrong with my sense of humor?"

"Well, now I'm laughing with you and not at you."

"That's good to know."

Will smiled, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear when an idea popped into his mind. "Stay here." He kissed her forehead before getting off the bed and leaving the room.

"Where are you going?" She asked, staring quizzically at the door.

"It's a surprise!" Will called out behind him.

 

**_"When the rain_ **

**_Is blowing in your face_ **

**_And the whole world_ **

**_Is on your case_ **

**_I could offer you_ **

**_A warm embrace_ **

**_To make you feel my love"_ **

"How are you feeling now?" Will asked.

In an effort to cheer her up, he had surprised her with a warm bubble bath, an oldie but goodie. She already had a bottle of Mr. Bubbles, but he ducked out to the all night convenience store in Little Italy to pick up a few things.

The look on Snow's face was priceless when she walked in and saw her bathroom covered in lit candles and flower petals on the floor with lavender sprinkled in the tub. Naturally, she had invited him in with her, and they were relaxing as Adele's cover of "Make You Feel My Love" played from Spotify on Will's phone.

Snow smiled, resting her head against his chest. "So fantastic but also so unlike you."

"Hey," Will wrapped his arms tighter around her from behind. "I have a romantic side, too."

"You've more than proved it now."

Sure, they've showered together before but it was more zealous and not sensual like it was now in the tub. It was rather enjoyable and made Snow feel very mature.

"Sorry about the Jesus candles, by the way. It was all I could find."

She shook her head and suppressed a giggle. "No worries, babe. You could have asked me, Sylvie and I practically live at Bath and Body Works."

"I wanted it to be a surprise."

"Next time there's a sale we'll go."

Snow started thinking of all the candles and wallflowers she wanted to get for his apartment, the thought made her smile.

"No man has ever done anything like this for me before. It's beautiful."

Snow put her hand on the back of Will's neck and pulled him down for a deep kiss. They both wanted to say the words, but the mutual love radiated throughout the room.

"I'd do anything for you, Snow. Don't ever forget that."

She relaxed into his touch again as the song changed on Spotify.

"Fry?"

"Yeah?"

"Will you still love me tomorrow?" She asked as her eyes closed.

He nodded, kissing the side of her head. "Of course. Will you love me tomorrow?"

She nodded, whispering "without a doubt" as she fell asleep in his arms to the timeless Carole King ballad.

**_THE NEXT DAY_ **

After feeding Owen a bottle and putting him down for a nap, Natalie relaxed on the couch and grabbed her phone. She smiled at all the comments on the pictures she posted. So far, motherhood was something else and she loved Owen more than life itself. Deciding to see what the rest of the world was up to, she checked her newsfeed, only to be surprised by the first post. It was two pictures of Katniss and Peeta from _The Hunger Games_ kissing, one from the scene in the woods from the first movie and the second one on the beach from _Catching Fire,_ but the third picture directly beneath them was one of Will and Snow kissing with their eyes closed. Natalie's mouth flew open as her eyes scanned the caption.

"You love me. Real or not real?" "Real." followed by "He's the Peeta to my Katniss" with a hearts for eyes emoji.

Scurrying over to Will's profile, she found a video of Snow dancing to "Fell in Love With a Girl" by The White Stripes, the caption reading "When you're dating the cutest girl in Chicago if not the world" along with Snow's name tagged. The final blow came with the most recent status update.

**_Will Halstead is in a relationship with Snow Greyson._ **

Natalie didn't want to believe it, how could this have happened? She still had feelings for him. Who was she to him now?


	24. Familiar Faces

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Will and Snow's relationship progresses; A friendly face from Will's past returns; "Friendsgiving" at Aunt Endora's is interrupted by a mysterious caller.

**Hi, everybody! So sorry it's been FOREVER since I posted last. There has been A LOT going on for me both with school and personally, some good and some bad. I hope that you like the latest installment though! School is finally over and hopefully I'll be able to resolve my other issues as well.**

**Lots of new characters this chapter! They are on my Pinterest board and I'll put them on my profile, but here's the breakdown:**

**Ellie Kemper as Dr. Clover Horton-Lancelot**

**Titus Burgess as Amadeus**

**Keegan Michael-Key as Dr. Grady Pepper**

**Andy Sandberg as Toby Lancelot, Esq.**

**Wilson Cruz as David James**

**Ethan Embry as Duke**

**Eileen Davidson as Aunt Endora**

**Paul Schulze as Uncle Simon**

**I've had so much fun with all of them! I came up with the closet idea a while back and fell in love with Trey Songs' cover of "Life on Mars" for** **_VINYL,_ ** **none of which I own!**

**Thank you so much to all those that reviewed and followed!**

**_Chapter Twenty Four: Familiar Faces_ **

Will smiled as he saw Snow sitting on the front desk talking to Maggie. It was pretty quiet at the hospital today, which was unusual considering Thanksgiving was only a few days away.

"Hey sexy, how's your morning so far?" Will asked as he walked up to the desk.

"I'm doing quite swell this morning, thank you very much." Maggie replied with a sassy flip of her curly hair, making Will and Snow smirk.

"Good to know." Will said.

"Hi, babes. How's your morning going so far?" Snow asked as Maggie resumed working at the computer.

"It's good, I can't believe how slow it is today."

"People are probably out of town or getting ready to leave."

Will nodded. "Very true. Speaking of which, how did your parents take it when you told them you weren't coming home for Thanksgiving?"

"Surprisingly well. They were really happy, as a matter of fact."

After Clover met Snow, she insisted that Will invite her to join the rest of the family at Thanksgiving. It was probably the first time Will ever brought a girl to meet anybody besides Jay, but he wasn't as apprehensive to ask Snow as he originally thought.

"That reminds me though." Snow cleared her throat and started looking all around. "I wanted to ask you something."

"Yeah?" He could tell that she was nervous because she was avoiding eye contact and braiding and re-braiding her hair.

"Um, well, I... I know it hasn't been that long but, uh, and I've never asked anybody this before that wasn't Skeet, but I was kind of..."

Will lifted her chin with his finger. "I'd love to."

She blinked slowly, surprised. "Really?"

"Of course. Besides, I should get to know the family better, don't you think?"

Her face broke out into a huge smile. "Oh, my gosh! Will!"

Snow started laughing as she threw her arms around his neck, landing gracefully on the floor as she gave him a big kiss.

"MWAH!"

He hugged her back. "Whatever makes you happy, Jem."

"I'm thrilled, are you kidding me?" She kissed him again, pulling back with another smile."Hey, did you ever noticed with our foreheads and noses pressed together we're crosseyed?"

"Oh, yeah, you're totally right."

"Glad to know I'm not alone with that." She rubbed noses with his. "I gotta go tell my mom about Christmas!"

She gave him a kiss on the cheek before strolling off, humming to herself. Will looked over to see that Maggie had been not so discreetly watching the whole thing.

"What?" He asked.

"Oh, nothing... Dr. Love." She looked away with a sly grin.

The second time around he didn't even cringe, it didn't matter anymore.

"It's cute, I'll give you that, Maggie."

"All I'm saying is that I'm really glad about this, it sure beats both of you moping around here miserably."

She'd never admit this, but Maggie knew that Will and Snow had a spark long before they even did, from the moment the first met at the front desk.

Will looked over to see Snow in the break room chatting with her mom, a huge smile on her face and her hand waving excitedly to match whatever she was saying.

I just wish she was more secure with things between us...

He was so preoccupied watching her and lost in thought that he didn't even see the man walking up to the front desk.

"Excuse me, m'am?"

Maggie looked up to see a man dressed in red doctors scrubs and a white lab coat. He was tall and slim with light caramel colored skin, almost black eyes, and a completely shaved head.

"Yes, how may I help you?"

"Hi there, I'm Grady Pepper, the new doctor, and ..." The man trailed off when he spotted the redhead on the other side of the desk. "Will?"

"Hmmm?"

As Will turned around, the man got a huge smile on his face.

"Thrill Ballstead?! I can't believe it!"

Will started laughing and walked over. "Whoa, Rad Pep!"

The two of them gave each other a bone crushing hug. Grady Pepper had not only been Will's college roommate, he was his fraternity brother and one of his best friends. Over the years, they had unfortunately fallen out of touch with the exception of random Facebook messages and comments.

"What are you doing here?"

"Eh, got bored with Miami. Figured I'd come back home and I heard about the opening here."

"Ha, you got _bored_ with Miami? Oh yeah, the yacht parties with bikini models must be such a drag." Will said, giving him a friendly slap on the shoulder. "Man, I can't believe it! How long have you been planning this?"

"About the past month or so. We've got lots of catching up to do, man. There's no Rad Pep without some Thrill to chill!"

Grady and Will laughed, not noticing Snow walking up.

"Alright, she's very glad that you're-" she stopped when she saw Grady. "Oh, hi there. Have we bet before?"

Grady shook his head. "No, I'm Dr. Zanetti's replacement, it's my first day."

"Snow, this is Dr. Grady Pepper, my college lifeline. Grady, this is Snow, one of the nurses here and my... uh... umm..." Will started fidgeting and looking every which way but at Snow and Grady.

They were both giving Will strange looks at how befuddled he had become before looking at each other. Why was he getting so tongue tied?

Snow stuck her hand forward. "Hi, I'm Snow Greyson, Will's girlfriend. I've heard a lot about you."

Grady shook her hand. "Whoa! I never thought I'd see the day where Will Halstead was taken off the market!" He elbowed Will. "Congrats, man. She's a cutie."

"Hello, Dr. Pepper, so nice to see you again." Sharon Goodwin walked up to the trio and shook hands with the new doctor. "Excited for your first day?"

"It's a pleasure to see you as well, Ms. Goodwin. Yes, I can't wait to get started."

"You'll do well with that attitude. There's some papers I'll need you to finish signing up in my office."

"Not a problem." Grady turned back to Will and Snow. "I'll catch you later, bud."

"Yeah, after work I'll introduce you to the Windy City."

"Sounds like a plan. It was nice meeting you, Snow."

"You, too, Grady."

Snow turned to Will as soon as Dr. Pepper and Ms. Goodwin left.

"Everything ok?"

"Hmm?" Will looked over at her.

"You kind of froze up there, introducing me to Grady."

Honestly, Snow didn't know what to think of this. Sure, it was a typical guy thing, but maybe there was something else going on that he wasn't saying?

Will heavily exhaled, running a hand through his hair. "Sorry about that. You might not believe this, but I'm still adjusting. Snow, you're my first serious relationship since Cecille, and the burn is still there. I know you wouldn't do something like that to me, I guess you can say I'm kind of insecure and vulnerable. I'm sorry, but I can promise that it'll be over soon enough."

What he had just admitted touched Snow deeply. Will was a very closed off person, until Snow came along, but this brought out that side of him that was so rarely seen, the real Will.

"Aww... Will." Snow put her hand on his cheek. "That's the sweetest thing I've ever heard."

"You're not mad?"

She shook her head. "Of course not! You just said yourself how you haven't been in a serious relationship for such a long time. That and you know I'm still a bit apprehensive about things..."

"You shouldn't be." He tilted her chin and smiled. "There's nothing to worry about, JemJem."

They hadn't spoken of Natalie since the night they went to see Clover, but that didn't mean Snow hadn't been thinking about it. Although, since they went public with their relationship, it seemed as if the love and support were flowing in by everybody around them.

Snow nodded. "I know, I know. You're right. Speaking of apprehensions, there has been one I've been wanting to break." With a sly grin on her face, she took Will by the hand and led him down the hall.

"Uh-oh, what's going on in that head of yours?" Will asked, even though he knew exactly what was about to happen.

"You'll see."

He chuckled, following her into the medical supply closet. "You're much naughtier of a girl than I thought you were..."

**_FORTY FIVE MINUTES LATER_ **

"Ahh, Will! Keep going. Do me, do me good! Faster, now!"

Snow dug her fingers into Will's white doctor's coat, her legs tightening around his waist as he thrust deeper inside, boxes of tongue dispensers and rubber gloves falling off the shelves from the force of their rocking against the wall. There was something about the fact that they were still dressed in their top halves that was hot.

The second they got into the medical supply closet, Snow had nearly tackled him to the ground. It had been weeks since they had sex with each other, and clearly their urges could no longer be contained.

"I know I've said this already, but God, did I miss you, babe." Will kissed her heatedly, pulling her closer to him. "Don't get me wrong, I missed you when I wasn't balls deep inside you, too."

Snow smiled. "That's sweet." Her smile disappeared. "No sweet talk here, shut up and fuck me!"

She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him harder, lifting up to roll on his length. Will rested his hand on the wall to steady them.

"When did you get so into the dirty talk? Falcon?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Don't all guys like that?"

He shrugged mid-thrust. "I guess. I'm not saying I don't like it, but you don't have to do it if you don't want to."

Snow kept it to herself, but Will was more subdued in the sack, she thought for sure he would be a freak.

"But if that's what you're into, go for it."

He reached down and spanked her, grabbing her butt and biting her neck, knowing that would bring her over the edge and the dirty talk was the last thing on her mind.

"I think it's happening, it's happening, Will-DAMNIT! YES!"

* * *

 

"You seem to have a great personality, you'll fit right in with the Gaffney staff." Maggie said as she walked with Dr. Pepper down the hall.

"I'm looking forward to working with you all. This hospital has a really terrific reputation, and the fact that Will Halstead is working here proves the patients are in good hands."

As they rounded the corner, they saw Will and Snow coming out of the medical supply closet. Their scrubs were wrinkled, Snow was fixing her hair, Will's hair was going in all different directions and he had lipstick kisses all over his face.

"How's my hair, do I look ok?" Snow asked him.

"Yeah, its fine. You look good."

Maggie cleared her throat, causing Snow and Will to turn around to see her and Grady. Grady had a laughing smile on his face while Maggie was stumped for once. Everybody's favorite sassy nurse wasn't sure whether or not to be confused or shocked.

Snow felt her heart leap out of her chest a little. "Oh! Maggie! Dr. Pepper! Hi!"

"Hello." Maggie replied.

Snow giggled nervously. "Uh, I was just helping Will- um, I mean, Dr. Halstead."

"Yeah, she was helping me..."

They both started talking over each other and pointing all around, which was when Grady could no longer contain himself and bust up laughing.

"Oh, damn! You're still living up to your name, Thrill Ballstead!"

"Guys," Maggie stepped forward. "I'm all for young love, but really? Thank your lucky stars it was only me and not Ms. Goodwin or Dr. Charles. You'd probably give one of them a heart attack."

Will nodded profusely. "Right. Yes, absolutely."

"I couldn't agree more." Snow said.

"Just pull yourselves together."

Maggie walked off, Grady bit his lip.

"Some things never change."

"Hey, that was meaningless, this is real."

Grady nodded. "I'm taking your word for it, but you do look happy."

Will smiled. "Thanks, I am. Let's catch up tonight, we'll take you to Molly's and introduce you to the superheroes of Chicago."

"Sounds good to me. I'll see you around, bro."

Snow looked up at Will as Grady left. "He seems... interesting." She began fixing his hair and wiping the lipstick kisses off of him.

"Ha, Grady is quite the character indeed. He's hilarious, we bonded over our family difficulties."

Grady had been adopted by a biracial couple when he was two. After his father passed away when Grady was 18, he set out on a search to find his biological parents, only to find out that they had both passed away as well.

"Well, I look forward to getting to know him better. Your friends are my friends." Snow wrapped her arms around Will's waist, pulling him closer to her, nestling her head into his chest and inhaling his masculine scent.

"Likewise." Will smiled, giving Snow a hug. "I especially can't wait to meet Imogen. She sounds like a great girl."

"She is."

Will snuck her a kiss on the cheek. "Don't worry, you'll always be my number one."

The alarms started blaring before Snow could reply, indicating a patient was about to arrive.

"Incoming. We'll pick this up later."

**_THANKSGIVING DAY_ **

**_"It's on America's tortured brow_ **

**_That Mickey Mouse has grown up a cow_ **

**_Now the workers have struck for fame_ **

**_'Cause Lennon's on sale again_ **

**_See the mice in their million hordes_ **

**_From Ibiza to the Norfolk Broads_ **

**_Rule Britannia is out of bounds_ **

**_To my mother, my dog, and clowns_ **

**_But the film is a saddening bore_ **

**_'Cause I wrote it ten times or more_ **

**_It's about to be writ again_ **

**_As I ask you to focus on_ **

**_Sailors fighting in the dance hall_ **

**_Oh man, look at those cavemen go_ **

**_It's the freakiest show_ **

**_Take a look at the lawman_ **

**_Beating up the wrong guy_ **

**_Oh man, wonder if he'll ever know_ **

**_He's in the best selling show_ **

**_Is there life on Mars?"_ **

Snow smiled as she and Grady finished their duet of "Life on Mars?" by David Bowie, with Grady on the piano and Snow sitting on top. Everybody clapped for them.

"Wow, great job, Snow!" Erin said, giving her a hand down from the piano. They had gotten to know each other better and were overdue for a double date with their Halstead boyfriends.

"Thanks! I couldn't have done it without some Rad Pep over here." She gave Grady a high five before resting her head on Will's shoulder. They were currently at Clover's parents house for "Friendsgiving". Aunt Endora, Uncle Andy, Clover, Clover's husband Toby, Amadeus and his boyfriend David James, Duke, Jay, Erin, Will, Snow, and Sylvie had all joined them. After finishing a wonderful meal and dessert, they were enjoying a sing along by Snow and Grady.

"Same for you, Snow. Although, we gotta get Ballstead over here to reunite our duo."

"What duo?" Snow looked over at Will.

"Oh, it's nothing." Will waved his hand away.

"It's not nothing!" Duke elbowed Will before turning to Snow. "They used to sing at weddings for some side money back in college."

"What?" Snow looked up at Will. "But when you serenaded me outside my window you told me you couldn't sing."

"I hadn't sang in a very long time, I was nervous how my voice would sound."

"Awww, Fry. You just continue to melt my heart." She leaned up and kissed him tenderly, knowing that he was smiling.

"You two really are such a cute couple."

Everybody looked over to see Aunt Endora walk in. She was tall, blonde and beautiful with clear blue eyes. In her younger days she had been a ballerina but gave it up when she became pregnant with Clover.

"I told you, Mom! Have you ever seen Will this happy?" Clover beamed, sipping apple cider and orange juice.

"He's just happy that he doesn't have to watch "Anaconda" anymore." Toby gave Will a playful shove, making everybody laugh. He was nice looking and slim with black curly hair, spaced out teeth and brown eyes.

Will rolled his eyes. "That was one time! I am never going to live this down."

"Sure you will, bud." Uncle Simon walked in. He seemed to be in good shape for his age and his head was shaved, a kind smile on his face.

"Well, if I had to pick anybody for Will that wasn't me, I pass the torch on to you, Snow!" Amadeus began stroking Will's arm again. "Take care of my man, baby girl!" He leaned in and gave Will a smacking kiss on the cheek, making the ginger blush.

"Amadeus!" Amadeus' Puerto Rican boyfriend David James rolled his eyes, running a hand through his short dark hair. Snow and Will had liked him right away, he was very easygoing and there was something so inviting about his chocolate brown eyes.

"Thank you so much, honey." Endora gave Snow a hug, which made Will very happy, nobody noticing that the phone was ringing. "Will and Jay are the sons I never had, next to Toby. It hasn't been easy for the boys these past few years, but you and Erin have given so much hope for them."

Snow smiled back at her. "Of course. We didn't exactly get off on the right foot, but we've more than made up for it."

"Endora," Simon called out. "you know who won't stop calling until you say something."

Endora groaned. "I better get to it." She rushed out of the room, an uneasy tension suddenly in the air as everybody could overhear her.

"Who is that?" Sylvie asked.

"Trust me, you don't even want to know."

"NO! I told you to stop! Don't call, don't write, don't you dare show up! I will not let you hurt them again!"

Endora slammed the house phone down, unaware of everybody watching her.

"Mom?!" Clover called out. "Is everything ok?" She and Toby followed Simon into the kitchen to comfort Endora, who was silently crying.

Jay looked over at Will. "Whoa, what the hell was that?"

"That's what I want to know." Snow added before looking up at Will. "Do you have any idea?"

All he did was shrug. "Not in the slightest."

Quite frankly, he didn't want to know who it was, he just didn't want his aunt to be this upset.


End file.
